Gaudiya Touchstone | Issue 8 by Gaudiya Touchstone

Senior Editor

Swami B.G. Narasingha

Assistant Editors

Swami B.B. Vishnu Swami B.V. Giri Swami Srirupa Madhava

Copy Editor

Priyanana

Science Editor

Swami B.B. Vishnu

Translators

Swami B.V. Giri Sanatana

Layout and Design

Rasikananda Gaura-Gopala

Art Department

Dominique Amendola

Photography

Rammohan Nila Newsom Swami B.V. Giri Satyaraja

Webmaster

Advaita Acharya

Contents 01 03 15

Editorial Who is Krishna?

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Ma Muncha Pancha Dashakam

Swami B.R. Sridhara

The Secret of the Destruction of Devakiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Six Unborn Children

Sri Sri Saraswati Samlapa Part-2

Vrindavana

Taraka Brahma Yoga

Swami B.P. Puri Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura Bhaktivinoda Thakura Swami B.G. Narasingha

Sri Krishna Janmastami

Photospread - Sri Krishna Janmastami

Real Religion is Not Man-Made

Vaishnavism & Religious Equality

Temples of Karnataka

The Myth of the Aryan Invasion

109

Swami B.G. Narasingha Gosai Archives Swami B.G. Narasingha Gaura Gopala Rasikananda Swami B.V. Giri

A Search for the Historical Krishna Dr. N.S. Rajaram

115

Does the Soul Exist?

119

Words of Wisdom

121

Culinary Magic

Dr. Robert Lanza

Advaita Acharya

Editorial

Welcome to Issue 8 of Gaudiya Touchstone. This issue is devoted to Krishna Janmastami, the appearance of Lord Sri Krishna, which falls on August 18th this year. Our first article, Who is Krishna? is a lecture by Srila Prabhupada explaining the position of Lord Krishna according to the Vedic literatures. Ma Muncha Pancha Dashakam is a Sanskrit prayer of fifteen verses composed by Swami B.R.Sridhara Maharaja begging for the Lord’s mercy. Swami B.P. Puri Maharaja explains the esoteric origins of Devaki’s first six sons in The Secret of the Destruction of Devaki’s Six Unborn Sons. We continue with part 2 of Saraswati Thakura’s discourse in Sri Sri Saraswati Samlapa. Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Bengali poem Vrindavana tells us something of the nature of the spiritual world and how the living beings attains it. This issue’s excerpt from Bhagavad-gita deals with the eternality of Krishna’s abode and the origin of the individual atma. Sri Krishna Janmastami is a lecture given in Govindaji Gardens in 2011 wherein a synopsis of Krishna’s appearance is given. This is followed by a photo spread of pictures from last year’s Janmastami festival in Govindaji Gardens. The article, Real Religion is Not Man-Made explores the philosophy of religion and contrasts Vaishnavism with the Abrahamic religions of the west. Gaura Gopala gives a similar in-depth look into the various philosophical differences in religious thought in Vaishnavism and Religious Equality. Rasikananda takes us to the ancient temple of Bhu-Varaha in Temples of Karnataka and Swami Giri uncovers the truth behind The Myth of the Aryan Invasion. Dr. N.S. Rajaram goes on The Search for the Historical Krishna. On the scientific front, Dr.

Robert Lanza asks Does the Soul Exist? and in our Culinary Magic section, Advaita Acharya shows us how to prepare one of most celebrated sweets in India - Rasgulla. Our next issue of Gaudiya Touchstone will be released on March 1st 2015. In the meantime, we wish all our readers a happy and auspicious Janmastami celebration. OM TAT SAT Swami Narasingha

E V O

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Who is Krishna?

- A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

ust 1973, at Bhaktivedanta Manor, in the countryside near London. Several thousand guests uding the Indian High Commissioner) listen to Srila Prabhupada speak about the confidential tity of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is revealed in India’s timeless Vedic scriptures to ot an old man with a long white beard but a sublimely attractive and eternal youth.

r Excellency the High Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I thank you very much for your ing here and participating in this ceremony—Janmastami, the advent of Lord Krishna. In Bhagavad-gita (4.9) Krishna says, janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvatah tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so ‘rjuna One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna. (Gita 4.9)

a fact that we can stop our repeated births and deaths and achieve the state of immortality. the modern civilization—our great philosophers, great politicians, and great scientists— have no idea that it is possible to attain the stage of amritatvam, immortality. We are mrita, deathless, immortal. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said, na jayate mriyate va kadachit: living entities—we never die and never take birth. Ajo nityah shashvato ‘yam purano na yate hanyamane sharire. Every one of us—we are primeval and eternal, without beginning without end. And after the annihilation of this body, we do not die. But when the body is hed, we will have to accept another body: dehino ‘smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara tatha dehantara-praptir dhiras tatra na muhyati

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As the embodied soul continuo from boyhood to youth to old passes into another body at dea bewildered by such a change. (G

At the present moment, all over th knowledge of this simple thing: t are part and parcel of Lord Krishna eternal, we are blissful, and we are co in the Vedic literatures:

ishvarah paramah sac-chid-anandaanadir adir go sarva-karana-k

Krishna, who is known as G Personality of Godhead. He has an body. He is the origin of all, but H the prime cause of all causes. (Br

When I say Krishna, that means “ “God has no name.” That’s a fact. Bu activities. For instance, Krishna ac Nanda and Yashoda-mayi and als Of course, no one is actually the f because Krishna is the original fat Krishna comes here, when He ma certain exalted devotees as His fathe

Still, Krishna is adi-purusham, the Krishna be very old? No. Nava-ya youth. That is Krishna. When Kri of Kurukshetra, He was just like a

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ously passes, in this body, d age, the soul similarly ath. A sober person is not Gita 2.13)

he world people are lacking that all of us living entities a—that like Krishna, we are ognizant. Krishna is described

h krishnah -vigrahah ovindah karanam

Govinda, is the Supreme n eternal, blissful, spiritual He has no origin, for He is rahma-samhita 5.1)

“God.” It is sometimes said, ut God’s name is given by His ccepted sonship to Maharaja so to Vasudeva and Devaki. father or mother of Krishna, ther of everyone. But when akes His advent, He accepts er, as His mother.

original person. Then must auvanam ca: Always a fresh ishna was on the Battlefield a boy of twenty years or, at

Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all, but He has no origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes. (Brahmasamhita 5.1) 6

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most, twenty-four years. But at that time He had great-grandchildren. So Krishna is always a youth. These are the statements of the Vedic literatures.

“

But if we simply read the Vedic literatures as a formality, it will be very difficult to understand what Krishna is—although all the Vedas are meant for understanding Krishna. In the Bhagavad-gita Krishna says, vedaish cha sarvair aham eva vedyah: “By all the Vedas it is I who am to be known.” What is the use of studying the Vedas if you do not understand Krishna? The ultimate goal of education is to understand the Supreme Lord, the supreme father, the supreme cause. As it is said in the Vedanta-sutra, athato brahma jijnasa: “Now—in the human form of life—is the time to discuss the Supreme Absolute Truth, Brahman.”

A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor entities, attains peace from the pangs of material miseries. (Gita 5.29)

“

and well-wisher of all living

And what is this Brahman? Janmady asya yatah. Brahman is the one from whom everything emanates. So science and philosophy mean finding out the ultimate cause of everything. And this we are getting from the Vedic literature—that Krishna is sarva-karana-karanam, the cause of all causes. Just try to understand. For instance, I am caused by my father; my father is caused by his father; he is caused by his father,

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who is caused by his father... In this way, if you go on searching, then you’ll ultimately come to someone who is the cause that has no cause. Anadir adir govindah. The cause that has no cause is Govinda-Krishna. I may be the cause of my son, but at the same time I am the result of another cause (my father). But the Vedic literatures say that Krishna is the original person; He has no cause. That is Krishna. Therefore Krishna says, “Just try to learn about the transcendental nature of My advent and activities.” The advent of Krishna—it is a very important thing. We should try to understand Krishna, why He makes His advent, why He comes down to this material world, what His business is, what His activities are. If we simply try to understand Krishna, then what will be the result? The result will be tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so ‘rjuna – we will get immortality. The aim of life is amritatvaya kalpate, to achieve immortality. So today, on the advent of Krishna, we shall try to understand the philosophy of Krishna. His Excellency was speaking of peace. The peace formula is there in the Bhagavad-gita – spoken by Krishna. What is that? bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-maheshvaram suhridam sarva-bhutanam jnatva mam shantim ricchati A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attains peace from the pangs of material miseries. (Gita 5.29) The politicians and diplomats are trying to establish peace in the world. We have the United Nations and many other organizations. They are working to establish real peace and tranquillity, to eliminate misunderstanding between man and man and nation and nation. But that is not happening. The defect is that the root is wrong. Everyone is thinking, “It is my country,” “It is my family,” “It is my society,” “It is my property.” This “my” is illusion. In the Vedic literatures it is said, janasya moho ‘yam aham mameti. This “I-and-my” philosophy is maya-illusion.

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So if you want to get out of this maya, this illusion, then you have to accept Krishna’s formula. Mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te. Whoever surrenders to Krishna can easily cross beyond all illusion. Everything is there in the Bhagavad-gita, for our guidance. If we accept the philosophy of the Bhagavad-gita-as it is—everything is there. Peace is there, prosperity is there. Unfortunately, we do not accept it, or we misinterpret it. This is our misfortune. In the Bhagavad-gita Krishna says, man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru: “Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me, and offer obeisances unto Me.” Is it a very difficult task? Here is Krishna’s Deity. If you think of this Deity, is it very difficult? You come into the temple, and just as a devotee would do, you offer your respect to the Deity. As far as possible, try to worship the Deity. Krishna does not want your property. Krishna is open to the poorest man for being worshiped. What is He asking? He says, patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati: “With devotion, if a person offers Me a little leaf, a little fruit, a little water, I accept it.” Krishna is not hungry, but Krishna wants to make you a devotee. That is the main point. Yo me bhaktya prayacchati: “Offer something to Me—with devotion.” That is the main principle. Offer Krishna some little thing. Krishna is not hungry; Krishna is providing food for everyone. But Krishna wants your love, your devotion. Therefore He is begging a little water or fruit or a flower. In this way, manmana bhava mad-bhakta: you can think of Krishna and become His devotee. There is no difficulty in understanding Krishna and accepting Krishna consciousness. But we’ll not do it—that is our disease. Otherwise, it is not difficult at all. And as soon as we become a devotee of Krishna, we understand the whole universal situation. Our bhagavata philosophy, our God conscious philosophy, is also a kind of spiritual communism, because we regard Krishna as the supreme father and all living entities as sons of Krishna. And Krishna says, sarva-loka-maheshvaram. He is the proprietor of all planets. Therefore whatever there is, either in the sky or in the water or on the land, it is all Krishna’s property. And because we are all sons of Krishna, every one of us has the right to use our father’s property. But we should not encroach upon others. This is the formula for peace. Ishavasyam idam sarvam... ma gridhah kasya svid dhanam: “Everything belongs to God, and since you are sons of God, you have the right to

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use your father’s property. But do not take more than you need. This is punishable.” If anyone takes more than he needs, then he’s a thief. Yajnarthat karmano ‘nyatra loko ‘yam karma-bandhanah. Whatever we do, we should do it for the satisfaction of Krishna. We should act for Krishna; we should do everything for Krishna. That is what we are teaching here. In this temple we are all residing happily—Americans, Indians, Englishmen, Canadians, Africans—people from all different parts of the world. You know that. It is like that not only in this temple, but wherever people are Krishna conscious, throughout the world. Krishna makes His advent to teach this lesson. When we forget this philosophy—that Krishna is the supreme father, Krishna is the supreme proprietor, Krishna is the supreme enjoyer, and Krishna is the supreme friend of everyone—when we forget this, then we come into this material world and struggle for existence, fight with one another. This is material life. Nor can we get any relief through our politicians, diplomats, philosophers. They have tried so much, but actually nothing they have tried has become fruitful. Take the United Nations. It was organized after the second great war, and they wanted, “We shall now settle everything peacefully.” But there is no such thing. The fighting is going on, between Pakistan and India or between Vietnam and America or this and that. Mundane politics and diplomacy and philosophy—this is not the process. The process is Krishna consciousness. Everyone has to understand this point, that we are not proprietors. The actual proprietor is Krishna. That’s a fact. Take America, for example. Say two hundred years ago, the European immigrants were not the proprietors. Somebody else was the proprietor, and before that somebody else was the proprietor, or it was vacant land. But the actual proprietor is Krishna. Artificially we are claiming, “It is my property.” This is called maya, illusion. So Krishna makes His advent to give us this lesson. Krishna says, yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata: “My dear Arjuna, I come when there are discrepancies in the process of religious life.” And what is real dharma, real religious life? The simple definition of dharma is dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam: “Real religious life is that which is enunciated directly by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” For instance, what do you mean by “civil law”? Civil law means the word given by the state. You cannot make civil law at home. That

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is not possible. Whatever the government gives you—”You should act like this”— that is law. Similarly dharma, religious life, means the direction given by God. That is dharma. Simple definition. If you create some dharma or I create some dharma or another man creates another dharma, these are not dharma. Therefore Krishna ends the Bhagavad-gita by saying, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam sharanam vraja: “Just give up all your concocted ideas about dharma and surrender to Me.” This is dharma—surrender to Krishna. Any other “dharma” is not dharma. Otherwise why does Krishna ask, sarva-dharman parityajya—”Give it all up”? He has already said, “In every age I make My advent to establish the principles of religion.” And at last He says that we should give up all the so-called religious principles that we have manufactured. All these man-made principles are not actually religious principles. Real dharma, real religious life, means what is given by God. But we have no understanding of what God is and what His word is. That is modern civilization’s defect. But the order is there, God is there—it is simply that we won’t accept. So where is the possibility of peace? Everything is there, ready-made. But we won’t accept. So what is the remedy for our disease? We are searching after peace, but we won’t accept the very thing that will actually give us peace. This is our disease. Therefore, this Krishna consciousness movement is trying to awaken the dormant Krishna consciousness in everyone’s heart. Just consider: four or five years ago, these Europeans and Americans had never even heard of Krishna—so how are they now taking Krishna consciousness so seriously? Krishna consciousness is already there in everyone’s heart. It simply has to be awakened. And this awakening process is described in the Chaitanya-charitamrita: nitya siddha krishna-prema ‘sadhya’ kabhu naya shravanadi-shuddha-chitte karaye udaya Love for Krishna, devotion for Krishna, is within everyone’s heart, but we have forgotten. So this Krishna consciousness movement is simply meant for awakening that dormant love, by giving everyone the chance to hear about Krishna. This is the process.

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For instance, when you are sleeping, I have to call you loudly. “Mr. Such-and-such! Such-and-such! Get up! You have to tend to this business.” No other senses will act when you are sleeping. But the ear will act. Therefore in this age, when people are so fallen that they will not listen to anything, if we chant this Hare Krishna maha-mantra they’ll be awakened to Krishna consciousness. This is practical. So if we are actually anxious for peace and tranquillity in society, then we must be very serious about understanding Krishna. That is my request. Don’t take the Krishna consciousness movement lightly. This movement can solve all the problems of life, all the problems in the world. Social, political, philosophical, religious, economic—everything can be solved by Krishna consciousness. Therefore, we request those who are leaders—like His Excellency, who is present here—to try to understand this Krishna consciousness movement. It is very scientific and authorized. It is not a mental concoction or a sentimental movement. It is a most scientific movement. So we are inviting all leaders from all countries to try to understand. If you are sober, if you are actually reasonable, you’ll understand that this Krishna consciousness movement is the most sublime movement for the welfare of the whole human society. Anyone may come—we are prepared to discuss this subject matter. The ultimate goal of human life is to achieve immortality. Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti. This is our mission, but we have forgotten this. We are simply leading the life of cats and dogs, without any knowledge that we can achieve that perfection of life where there will be no more birth, no more death. We do not even understand that there is the possibility of amritatvam, immortality. But it is totally possible. Nobody wants to die. Nobody wants to become an old man. Nobody wants to become diseased. This is our natural inclination. Why? Because originally, in our spiritual form, there is no birth, no death, no old age, no disease. So after moving through the evolutionary process, up through the aquatics, plants, trees, birds, when at last we come to this human form of body— then we should know what the goal of life is. The goal of life is amritatvam, to become immortal. Immortal you can become, simply by becoming Krishna conscious. Krishna says it. It is a fact. We simply have to understand. Janma karma cha me divyam evam yo

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vetti tattvatah. If you try to understand Krishna in truth, then tyaktva deham punar janma naiti: After giving up this body, you won’t have to accept any more material bodies. And as soon as you don’t accept any more material bodies, that means you have become immortal. The thing is, by nature we are immortal. And Krishna comes here to teach us this lesson: mamaivamsho jiva-loke jiva-bhutah sanatanah manah-sasthanindriyani prakirti-sthani karsati You are immortal by nature. As spirit soul, you are part and parcel of Me. I am immortal, and so you are also immortal. Unnecessarily, you are trying to be happy in this material world. (Gita 15.7) You have already tried and tried to find happiness in sensuous life, through so many bodies—as cats, as dogs, as demigods, as trees, as plants, as insects. So now that you have a human body, with its higher intelligence, don’t be captivated by sensuous life. Just try to understand Krishna. That is the verdict of the Vedic literatures. Nayam deho deha-bhajam nrloke kastan kaman arhate vid-bhujam ye. To work very hard like dogs and hogs for sense gratification is not the proper ambition of human life; human life is meant for a little austerity. Tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam shuddhyet: We have to purify our existence; that is the mission of human life. Why should we purify our existence? Brahma-saukhyam tv anantam: Because then we will get spiritual realization, the unlimited, endless pleasure and happiness. That is real pleasure, real happiness: ramante yogino ‘nante satyananda-chid-atmani iti rama-padenasau param brahmabhidhiyate The mystics derive unlimited transcendental pleasures from the Absolute Truth, and therefore the Supreme Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead, is also known as Rama. (Padma Purana) All the great saintly persons of India have cultivated this spiritual knowledge so nicely and fully. Formerly, people used to go to India to find out about spiritual life. Even Jesus Christ went there. And yet we are not taking advantage of it. It is not that

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these literatures and directions are meant only for the Indians or for the Hindus or for the brahmanas. No. They are meant for everyone, because Krishna claims, aham bija-pradah pita: “I am everyone’s father.” Therefore, He is very anxious to make us peaceful and happy. Just as an ordinary father wants to see that his son is well situated and happy, similarly Krishna wants to see every one of us well situated and happy. Therefore He comes sometimes. This is the purpose of Krishna’s advent. Thank you very much.

(1) ma munca munca mam krishn patitam ghora-samsare hya

O Krishna! You are an unlimited oce do not leave Your servant – do not le terrible cycle of birth and death. Com am completely helpless.

(2) ma munca munca mam krishn anadi-bhagya-vaigunyat bho

O Krishna! You are an unlimited oce souls, do not leave Your servant – do encompassing misfortune which beg material time and space, my heart ha desires of material enjoyment.

(3) ma munca munca mam krishn maya-kridanakam dinam n

Ma Munca pancha-dashakam

- Swami B.R. Sridhara

O Krishna! You are an unlimited oce do not leave Your servant – do not le puppet in the hands of Maya. I am p shelter.

(4) ma munca munca mam krishn janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi

O Krishna! You are an unlimited oce do not leave Your servant – do not le fear of birth, death, old age, disease

na! dasam dina-dayarnava! avasham prakritervashat

ean of mercy to the fallen souls, eave me! I have fallen into this mpletely enslaved by Maya, I

na! dasam dina-dayarnava! ogamugdham durashayam

ean of mercy to the fallen o not leave me! Due to my allgan outside the jurisdiction of as become polluted with the

na! dasam dina-dayarnava! niralasvam nirashrayam

ean of mercy to the fallen souls, eave me! I have become a pitiable, with no support and no

na! dasam dina-dayarnava! i-bhiti-cintati-kataram

ean of mercy to the fallen souls, eave me! I am tormented by the and other continuous anxieties.

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(5) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! jnanajnana-kritananta- papa-bhoga-bhayakulam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! I continually fear paying the price of the innumerable sins that I have performed either knowingly or unknowingly. (6) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! kama-krodhadi-dasyubhi nirdayam padamarditam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! I am mercilessly crushed under the feet of lust, anger and other dacoits. (7) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! anta˙-shatru-viparyastam puna˙ punar-valancitam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! Perverted by my internal enemies, I put myself to shame again and again. (8) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! tranartham prathyamano’pi na mam pashyati kashcana O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! Although no one turns towards me, I pray to be freed from my suffering.

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(9) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! pitaro bandhava deva asamartha para∫mukha O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! All my seniors, my friends and the demigods turn away from me and are unable to help me. (10) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! sva-para-bharasa-hinam nirupayam nirakritam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! I have lost all hope in myself and in others. I have come to a dead end and cannot justify my own existence. (11) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! mahaparadha-rashinamalayam tyakta-sadhanam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! I have rejected my sadhana and have become a storehouse for thousands of unforgivable offenses. (12) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! he sadasad-vicarorddha prapannarti haro hare O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! O Hari, Who is aloof

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of judging what is pious and impious - You relieve the pain of those who surrender unto You. (13) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! dasatvam dehi dasanam tava deva dayanidhe O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! O Lord! O ocean of mercy! Kindly give me service unto Your servants. (14) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! niyu∫ksha nitya-dasye mam pradaya prema-vartanam O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave Your servant – do not leave me! Please engage me in Your eternal service and maintain my life by remunerating me with prema. (15) ma munca munca mam krishna! dasam dina-dayarnava! svastaranga-sevam dehi he gopi-jana-vallabha O Krishna! You are an unlimited ocean of mercy to the fallen souls, do not leave your servant – do not leave me! O beloved of the gopis, kindly give me service according to Your heart’s desire. (16) ma munca-panca-dashakam! krishna-dina-dayarnava! tridandi-shridharod-gitam grhanedam stavamritam 16) O Krishna! O ocean of mercy to the fallen souls – kindly accept this nectarean prayer Ma Munca Pancha-dashakam that is sung by the tridandi-sannyasi Sridhara.

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The Secret o

of the Destruction of Devakiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Six Unborn Children - Swami B.P. Puri Goswami Maharaja

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In the book Sri Hari-vamsha (2nd chapter of the Vishnu-parva) it is written that Hamsa, Suvikrama, Kratha, Damana, Ripu-mardana and Krodha-hanta, who are known as the shad-garbha (six unborn children), are the sons of the demon Kalanemi. They performed intense austerities to worship the universal grandsire Brahma, unbeknown to their own grandfather Hiranyakashipu. Brahma, being satisfied with their extreme penances, granted them the boon of protection from death according to their prayers. Later, when Hiranyakashipu heard about this incident, he became enraged and said, “You have worshipped Brahma without letting me know, thus I have no affection for impudent people such as you. Your father himself will kill all of you. In your next life all six of you will take birth in the womb of Devaki and your father Kalanemi will be born as Kamsa. That very Kamsa will be your murderer.” Due to this curse of Hiranyakashipu they took birth in the womb of Devaki and were killed by Kamsa, the incarnation of Kalanemi. Prior to this, they were well known by the names Smara etc. and were the sons of Marichi Muni. They laughed after seeing the universal grandsire Brahma running after his own daughter. Due to this offence of looking down on a great personality, they had to take birth as demons. In the Srimad Bhagavata (10.85.47-57) it is mentioned that due to the prayer of Mother Devaki, Sri Rama and Sri Krishna brought back her six dead sons from Sri Baliraja’s Sutala-puri:

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asan mariche shat putra urnayam prathame’ntare devah kam jahasur viksya sutam yabhitum udyatam tenasurim agan yonim adhunavadya-karmana hiranyakashipor jata nitas te yoga-mayaya devakya udare jata rajan kamsa-vihimsitah sa tan socaty atmajan svams ta ime ’dhyasate ’ntike itah etan praneshyamah matri shoka apanuttaye tatah shapat vinirmuktah lokam yasyanti vijjvarah smarah udgithah parishvangah patangah kshudrabhrt ghrini shadime mat prasadena punah yasyanti sat gatim This means that after going to Sutala-puri Sri Krishna told Bali, the king of the Daityas, “O lord of the Daityas, during the manvantara of Svayambhuva, six demigod-like sons were born in the womb of Urna-devi, the wife of Maharishi Marichi. Seeing Brahma running after his own daughter (namely Sarasvati) they mocked him. As a result of this sin – hiranyakashipu sakshat kalanemi-kshetre – they took demoniac births as the sons of Kalanemi who was the son of Hiranyakashipu. Again from there they were forced to take birth in the womb of Devaki through Yogamaya and killed by Kamsa. Mother Devaki is mourning for them, considering them to be her own sons. Presently they are residing in your abode. To alleviate her maternal sorrow I will take them away from this place to meet their mother. Finally, they will go back to the planets of the demigods having been freed from their curse and from lamentation. These six sons of Marichi namely Smara, Udgitha, Parishvanga, Patanga, Ksudrabhrita and Ghrini will eventually attain the Supreme Abode by My mercy.” Now, if we go back to the aforementioned incident, a question arises,” How is it possible that six mundane children could enter the womb of Mother Devaki, who is the personification of pure goodness (shuddha-sattva), who manifests the Supreme Lord and is the embodiment of the greatest potency?” In this regard Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura refers to the previous incident and himself concludes: Although the entire expanse of the material world is situated within Sri Bhagavan, who is the very personification of truth and pure goodness, still it is separate in

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existence – it womb of Deva

“All the living but I am not My pure perso energy. This is

It cannot be ha bhakti, all thes of this is – the that womb bas (the five know well of materia will be vanqui and chanting, His form, qua Supreme Lord only devotion we may take it sense objects o appears from Because the sh fearfulness, he six material se The well-wish the womb of d are eliminated abode, the res

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is not directly connected to Him. Similarly the entrance of the six children into the aki should also be considered in that manner.” Bhagavan says in the Gita: mat-sthani sarva-bhutani na caham teshv avasthitah na ca mat-sthani bhutani pashya me yogam aishvaram

beings in material existence are situated within Me, the personification of consciousness, situated in them. Again, all the living beings in material existence are not situated in onal form (shuddha-svarupa). Everything is situated under the influence of My illusory s due to My inconceivable mystic opulence.” (Gita 9.4-5)

armonized by the intelligence of ordinary jivas. To display the fullness and completeness of se inconceivable pastimes of Sri Bhagavan are manifested. Therefore, the real significance e symptoms of devotion such as shravana, kirtana etc. reside within the devotees. Within sed on its fruitive results are the six desires of material enjoyment that are its companions wledge-acquiring senses and the mental faculty). “Alas, all these will drag me into the dark al life”– when such fear arises in the heart of a devotee, the desire for material enjoyment ished in time, then the glories of the Lord, namely the devotional cultivation of hearing , attains immense maturity. Only at that stage of mature devotion will Bhagavan with ality and pastimes appear. Bhakti is the personification of pure goodness and reveals the d. Even the words of the shruti support this – bhaktir-evainam darshayati etc. meaning that n can reveal Bhagavan. Because the shruti states that, ‘Marichi manifests from the mind’ t that Marichi is an incarnation of the mind. Marichi has six sons; hence they are the six of mental enjoyment (sound, touch, form, taste, smell and thought). Since Sri Bhagavan Devaki she is considered the avatara of bhakti – the very personification of devotion. hruti states, bhayat kamsah (‘the fear within Kamsa’), Kamsa is the personification of ence Kamsa is the avatara of fear. Therefore, just as fear of the material world destroys the ense objects from the womb of bhakti, similarly Kamsa kills the six children of Devaki. hing mother of prema-bhakti arises along with the glories of the Supreme Lord within devotion when material desires are extinguished Similarly, when the six sons of Devaki d, one should know that the seventh child appears as Anantadeva, who manifests as the sting place and the paraphernalia such as the bed, umbrella etc. of the Supreme Lord.

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Just as the Supreme Lord Himself appears after the appearance of prema-bhakti, so Sri Bhagavan directly appears as the eighth son of Devaki. This is the purport of the appearance of the Supreme Lord within the womb of Devaki. Sattvam vishuddham vasudeva shabditam â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Â pure goodness is known as Vasudeva. This Vasudeva self-manifests as the Supreme Lord Vasudeva. In the Srimad Bhagavata 1st Canto, 2nd Chapter: shrinvatam sva-kathah krishnah punya-shravana-kirtanah hridy antah-stho hy abhadrani vidhunoti suhrit satam Sri Krsna, who resides within everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heart and is the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses the desires for material enjoyment from the heart of that devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted. (Bhag. 1.2.17) nashta-prayeshv abhadreshu nityam bhagavata-sevaya bhagavaty uttama-shloke bhaktir bhavati naishthiki By regularly serving the Bhagavata, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and devotion unto the Supreme Lord, who is praised with choice verses, is fully established. (Bhag. 1.2.18) tada rajas-tamo-bhavah kama-lobhadayash cha ye cheta etair anaviddham sthitam sattve prasidati At that time, one is not affected by the modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust and greed. Then the mind is established in goodness, and becomes fully satisfied. (Bhag. 1.2.19) evam prasanna-manaso bhagavad-bhakti-yogatah bhagavat-tattva-vijnanam mukta-sangasya jayate Thus, the man enlivened by devotion to the Lord is freed from material association, and comes to know realise the truth concerning of the Supreme. (Bhag. 1.2.20)

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If we discuss all these verses we come to know this â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Â through the auspicious process of chanting and hearing, Krishna, the well-wishing friend of the devotees, enters the heart of those who hear His name, form, qualities and pastimes and eliminates all mundane desires of material enjoyment that are present as sin within the heart. Under the care of the devotee bhagavata and regularly hearing the book Bhagavata from the mouth of that devotee, anarthas are eliminated in time. At that stage steady devotion (nistha), devoid of any mental disturbance, arises towards the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna, who is glorified by select verses. Then mental disturbances arising out of the modes of passion and ignorance and obstacles to bhajana such as lust, anger, greed, illusion, madness, envy etc. are eradicated with the manifestation of taste towards hearing topics about Krishna and other devotional activities. Under the growing influence of the mode of goodness, the realisation of the living entity continuously increases, and in the association of saintly personalities, continuously cultivating Krishna consciousness leads to attraction towards the Supreme Lord, the personification of pure goodness. His mind attains satisfaction when it becomes fixed in pure goodness. In this way by the influence of bhagavata-bhajana (worship of the Bhagavata), the consciousness becomes content mukta-sanga means that the sadhaka, being free of material desires such as lust etc. realises the truth concerning the Bhagavata or meets the Bhagavata directly. With intense attachment, if one performs krishna-bhajana at every moment, then the influence of krishna-bhajana-rati (a taste or inclination towards Krishna) arises within him and his mind becomes free from the influence of matter and achieves real satisfaction. After this, prema-bhakti gradually increases until prema reaches maturity when one feels or realises the personal qualities, pastimes, opulence and sweetness of the reality of the Supreme Lord. This realisation or feeling has been called sakshatkara by Srila Jiva Goswamipada, referring to the Bhagavata shloka (1.2.7):Â vasudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogah prayojitah janayaty asu vairagyam jnanam ca yad ahaitukam By rendering devotional service unto the Supreme Lord Vasudeva one immediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world.

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Devotional renunciation and the causeless attainment of knowledge mentioned here are in tandem with the aforementioned Bhagavatam verse (1.2.20). Mukta-sangasya means the renunciation and realisation concerning the truth of the Supreme that results from coming directly in connection with the Supreme Lord. When attachment arises towards Bhagavan, the mind is free from the influence of material desires. Until one develops distaste towards material things, realisation concerning the truth about the Lord, or directly experiencing His presence is not possible. Sri Krishnaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appearance does not become the subject of realisation in the heart. Without understanding the appearance of Krishna, the life of the living entity is in vain.

By rendering devotional service unto the Supreme Lord Vasudeva one immediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world.

avismritih krishna-padaravindayoh kshinoty abhadrani cha sam tanoti sattvasya-shuddhim paramatma-bhaktim jnanam ca vijnana-viraga-yuktam For one who remembers the lotus feet of Krishna, all inauspiciousness soon disappears, and oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good fortune expands. In other words, one becomes free from all material contamination, one attains liberation from repeated birth and death, and oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s real spiritual life

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begins. As oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heart becomes gradually purified, oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s devotion for the Lord within the heart awakens, and one realises the Paramatma. Thus one gradually develops knowledge, realisation and renunciation (Bhag. 12.12.55) In this shloka of Sri Bhagavata the same meaning is also repeated. Therefore: sadhu-sange krishna-nama ei matra chaya bhajite bhajite krishna-pada-padma paya The only thing required is chanting the holy name of Krishna in the association of saintly devotees. By worshipping continuously, one obtains the lotus feet of Krishna. Srila Narottama Thakura Mahashaya has sang this prayer in the beginning of his Prarthana: ara kabe nitai-chanda karuna karibe samsara vasana mora kabe tucha habe vishaya chariya kabe shuddha habe mana kabe ama heribo sri vrindavana When will Nitai-chanda show His mercy to me? When will I feel the desire for material life to be insignificant? When will my mind be purified by rejecting material thing? When will I be able to see Sri Vrindavana? This prayer has been sung thus. Sri Baladeva is the very personification of the sandhinishakti that expands spiritual consciousness everywhere. Being non-different from his personal manifestation, in the form of Sri Guru, He delivers the message of Krishna for the aural reception of the living entities to purify their consciousness and free them from material contamination. Until this happens, the living entity will not develop eagerness to have darshana of the spiritual Vrindavana-dhama and the lotus feet of Krishna, the master of the dhama.

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guru-kripa-jale nibhai vishaya anala By the water of the mercy of Sri Guru I am able to extinguish the fire of material existence. (Gitavali 5.2) vishaya anale jvaliche hridaya anale bare anala sadhu-sanga kari hari bhaje jadi anale pade to jala The blazing fire of material existence is burning the heart, and that fire is always increasing. If one associates with saintly persons and performs bhajana of Hari, then such activities act like water and extinguishes that fire. The sermons of pure devotional principles coming forth from the mouth of Sri Guru will extinguish the fire of material existence and simultaneously urge the core of the heart to cry out, “Where is my Vrindavana? Where are the lotus feet of Radhika? Where is the treasure of the life of Radha, the life of the gopikas, Shyamasundara, the son of Yashoda?” When the mind is still contaminated by the filth of material desires, this intense cry does not arise in the heart. Until and unless we start crying like this – with intense hankering, with tears in our eyes and under the shelter of Sriman Mahaprabhu who is in the mood of vipralambha: kaha krishna prana-natha murali-vadana kaha jao kaha pao vrajendra-nandana Where is Krishna, the Lord of my life, the one who plays the flute? What can I do to find him? Where is the son of Nanda? (Cc. Madhya 2.15). – then we cannot get Him. Bhaktasya bhajanottha shrantis tad-darshanottha krishnakripa – without the combination of the devotees personal effort and the Lord’s mercy, the rope that binds Him will always be two fingers too short. Guru-kripa hi kevalam (Only the mercy of Sri Guru can make it possible).

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Sri S

Prabhupada: First ther has not begun, then shra in sadhya (the goal of o

Oh Vaishnava Thaku able to constantly w

There is no way to gain present time, we are en have no real necessity f

One who identifies h family are permanen or who sees a place o kinship with, worsh than a cow or an ass

Those that pull on thei do not see Krishna and acme of all scholarship

Sri Saraswati Samlapa A Discourse with Srila Saraswati Thakura - Part 2

re is shraddha (faith), then rati (attachment) Then after that comes bhakti. When sadhana addha is required. When sadhana ends, then comes the stage of rati. When one is established oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s practice) then comes bhakti, or prema. Thakura Bhaktivinoda has said: kripa kara vaishnava thakura sambandha janiya bhajite bhajite abhimana hau dura

ura, kindly bestow your mercy. Then only my false ego will be eradicated and I will be worship the Lord, being aware of my relationship with Him. (Kalyana-kalpataru 3.2.1)

n auspiciousness other than serving one who performs real service to Vishnu. At this ngaged in a tie of love between finite things. We feel the necessity of things that actually for us. yasyatma-buddhih kunape tri-dhatuke sva-dhih kalatradishu bhauma ijya-dhih yat-tirtha-buddhih salile na karhichij janeshv abhijneshu sa eva go-kharah

his self as the inert body composed of mucus, bile and air, who assumes his wife and ntly his own, who thinks an earthen image or the land of his birth is worshipable, of pilgrimage as merely the water there, but who never identifies himself with, feels hips or even visits those who are wise in spiritual truth â&#x20AC;&#x201D; such a person is no better s. (Bhag. 10.84.13)

ir beads in the same way that one pulls on the reigns of an animal, who make a noise, yet d Gaurasundara directly in every utterance they make, are not fit to be associated by us. The is krishna-sambandha (establishing a relationship with Sri Krishna).

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varam huta-vaha-jvala panjarantar-vyavasthitih na shauri-chinta-vimukhajana-samvasa-vaishamam It is preferable to live in an iron cage in the midst of a blazing fire, than to associate with those who are averse to meditating upon Shauri (Krishna), for such association is a great calamity. (Katyayana-samhita) If my real intention is to serve Bhagavan, then I will look at the entire world as ingredients for His service. Then a painting by Raphael will not be able to captivate me. I will understand that the songs of Chandidasa and Vidyapati should not be heard when one still has anarthas. If you go to Navadvipa, you will see that – just like the tales of the heroes and heroines of Vidyasundara, there are those who endeavor to enjoy the songs and poetry of Chandidasa and Vidyapati. Although Srinivasa Acharya Prabhu started a tradition of singing, it was not meant for nourishing and filling the burning hunger of people’s bellies, nor was it meant for the sense-enjoyment of people inflicted with anarthas. Those who do not understanding this are struck down by the arrows of lust, like a deer who becomes charmed by the song of a hunter. As a result of this, such people become degraded to the level of animals and ghouls and sink into hell. They will be in the garden of hell –with such intelligence they are madly engrossed in sense-enjoyment and do not listen to sadhus. Srinivasa Acharya Prabhu and Sri Vakresvara Pandita have created this method in order to deceive all those animals in human form. I cannot understand how learned people have so much belief in such bogus things nowadays. Once, R. Dutta’s father, N. Dutta, took Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura to Madhu Raya’s lane. N. Datta came to Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura and said, “Please understand, we only know Mahaprabhu. But my son has changed after associating with a Mayavadi! They are declaring an ordinary human being as a new avatara, a new Mahaprabhu! Kindly come to my house once and examine my son’s guru? Is he a sadhu or a sham? Whatever you say I will believe.” Sri Bhaktivinoda Thakura was very intimate with N. Datta. The day when R. was supposed to come to the house of his father, N. Datta brought Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura to his house with great care and hospitality. N. Datta said to his son, “One

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of my friends, who is a great Vaishnava has come. Mahaprabhu is his very life.” At that time the Vishva-Vaishnava Sabha had been established. In that assembly, Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura was very elaborately reading and explaining Bhakti-rasamritasindhu. Seeing Bhaktivinoda Thakura, R. started singing – Ya’re dekhile nayana jhure, ta’ra du bhai eseche re (‘The two brothers have come, seeing whom the eyes become fully satisfied’) and fell unconscious. Srimad Bhativinoda Thakura was in another room. R. was in that condition, lying on the verandah in front of that very room. After a while, some rasagullas were brought in front of R. who ate them and his remnants were eaten by other people. No one had the courage to offer that to Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura. A little later, some impure foodstuffs were brought. At first R. protested, but later he accepted it. All these activities were observed by Srimad Bhaktivinoda Thakura. After returning from there, he scrupulously verified all these symptoms with the proper standards authorized in Srimad Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu. Referring to the words of Sri Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu he pointed out the deception and cheating of the impersonalist section, and the section that advocates non-discrimination and equality between spirit and matter. The reflection (pratibimba) and the shadow of real rati (chaya-ratyabhasa) are not the symptoms of prema. For those who have taken impersonalism as their highest ideal, their imitation of devotional practices is a mere deception. Those schools of thought that encourage material desires promote the position of such insignificant men in the minds of the general populace. This is known as ‘apotheosis’ (ascribing divinity to a mortal). The devotees of Gaura are not inclined to apotheosis. They do not worship human beings nor are they Karta-bhajas (one of the 13 apa-sampradayas that worship their guru as God). They are the eternal servitors of the vishaya-vigraha (Krishna) who is embraced by the ashraya-vigraha (Radharani). This is the specialty of the teachings of gaura-bhajana.

Vrindav

- Bhaktivinoda

ana

a Thakura

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(1) nitya-dhama vrindavana yatha mora krishna-dhana nitya-kala karena vilasa chidanandamaya lata prema-kisalaya yatha jnananandamaya kunja-vasa Krishna, who is my treasure, engages in His immortal pastimes in the eternal abode of Vrindavana, where there are blissful, spiritual creepers, branches of transcendental prema and blissful, spiritual kunjas. (2) sunirmala upasana kalindite vibhavana yatha sada bhaktera hridaye jivera ye uccha-bhava govardhana avirbhava chare jiva gabhi-rupa haye In Vrindavana, thoughts of the purest form of worship on the banks of the Yamuna always manifest in the hearts of the devotees. There, the highest mood appears within the living entities at Govardhana, and the jivas graze in the form of cows. (3) sakhi-bhava bhratri-bhava yatha sada nitya-bhava ananda yahara matraÂ anga kama dvesha adi yata nahi yatha konaÂ mata prema-rupa rasa matra rangaÂ There, the eternal disposition of all is always one of friendship and brotherhood. There, bliss is the only element. There, lust, envy etc. do not exist. The mellows of prema are the only type of enjoyment.

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(4) dasya sakhya sumadhura vatsalyadi rasa-pura vraja-dhama premera alaya janma mrityu shodha roga nahi tatha kareÂ bhoga premamrita jivera ashraya It is the abode of the rasas of servitorship, friendship, parental affection, and conjugal love. Vraja-dhama is the home of divine love. There, one does not encounter birth, death, suffering or illness. The nectar of prema is the shelter of such jivas. (5) abhautika atindriya sei desha krishna-priya desha-kala atita sarvada bhutamaya deha laye jadasakta chitta haye keha na yaite pare tatha That land is transcendental, beyond the material senses and very dear to Krishna. It is eternally beyond time and space. Those with a mundane form and whose consciousness is attached to temporal things can never enter there. (6) sei jiva bhagyavana paiyachhe susandhana guru-krishna prasannatashraye manomaya bhutamaya dehe kariâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; parajaya yaya sei ananda nilaye Those jivas who have found shelter in the pleasure of Sri Guru and Krishna are supremely fortunate. They transcend both mental and physical bodies and reach that abode ofÂ bliss.

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(7) aprakrita deha pai vrajera nikata yai sakhi-pada kariya ashraya radha-krishna seva-sukha bhunji saba yaya duhkha mahabhava paryanta udaya Entering Vraja, they attain a divine body and take shelter at the feet of the sakhis. Delighting in the ecstasy of serving Radha-Krishna, they leave behind all types of misery and even experience the limits of maha-bhava. (8) ataeva bandhu-jana chala yai vrindavana ati dura nahe sei desha indriya samyama dhari’ antare pravesha kari’ samadhi labhibe avashesa Therefore friends. let us journey to Vrindavana! That place is not so far. Control the mundane senses, enter within, and finally attain samadhi. (9) bhuta-bhava desha kala viramile kichhu-kala atmara dahara vikashibe sei bhumi vrindavana jana ohe sadhu-jana yatha radha-govinda dekhibe Material time and space will remain for a while, but the atma’s intimate connection with that land will manifest. O sadhus! Know that land of Vrindavana to be where you will behold Radha and Govinda. (10) tatha keli kutuhale pashibe yamuna jale sakhi-saha radhika sevaya

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radhika jivaneshvari krishna-priya sarveshvari prema-vakya kahibe tomara There, in the waters of the Yamuna you will happily sport with the sakhis that serve Sri Radhika. Radhika, the Mistress of all the jivas, the beloved of Sri Krishna, the Goddess of all, will speak words laden with prema to you. (11) shunibe govinda vamshi jivera hridaya damshi bhuvana mataya yara rabe pulaka kadamba-tale tomaya anibe bale dubaibe premera asabe You will hear Govinda’s flute, which pierces the heart of the jivas and drives the world mad. The force of that sound will bring you under a blossoming kadamba tree and drown you in prema. (12) pashile yamuna jale prema-jvala aro jvale dhadaphadi uthibe takhana puline agata haye krishna-rupa nirakhiye eka-bare habe achetana Entering the waters of the Yamuna, the fire of prema will scorch you even more and your heart will beat rapidly. Coming back onto the river bank, you will see the form of Sri Krishna and lose all consciousness. (13) hena vrindavana dhama sarva-jiva abhirama chhadi yei yaya anya sthana tara sama murkha nai chinta kari’ dekha bhai yadi pao premera sandhana

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Sri Vrindavana-dhama enchants all living beings. Who will leave Vrindavana and go elsewhere? You will not find no greater fool as he. O brother! Please consider if you will discover prema elsewhere. (14) kaminira saha-vasa galpa adi parihasa madya kumbha alankara chaya sakali duhkhera mula sukha bali tavaÂ bhula ei bela bujhaha nishcaya The desire for intimate association with women, gossip, joking, bottles of wine, ornaments etc. are all sources of distress and considering them to be happiness is a mistake on your part. At this time you should clearly understand this. (15) dehe jvara praveshiya kanpaibe tavaÂ hiya kaphe kantha paripurna habe shunite na pabe kane nasika akshama ghrane nirasta haiya chakshu rare Fever will enter your body and make you tremble. Your throat will fill up with mucus. You will not be able to hear with your ears. Your nose will not be able to smell and your eyes will stop seeing. (16) priya bandhu yare jana se tomara habeÂ ana angaja karibe avahela dvare pratihari praya rakhibe tomare haya balakera habe tumi khela Those whom you consider to be your dear friends will become indifferent to you, and your relatives will treat you with contempt. Alas! Like gatekeepers,

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they will stop you from entering their houses and their children will poke fun at you. (17) purva ye priyasi tava ebe ghrina kare saba sura sukha nahi deya ara ye asthi charviya sukha paibe se ebe duhkha danta-hine ditechhe apara All those that previously loved you will now detest you, and alcohol will cease to give any pleasure. The bone that you chew and delight in will now cause pain, as you will begin to lose your teeth. (18) alankara paridhane ara shobha nahi mane ebe murti markata samana kotha se darpana-raja kotha se tomaya saja chinti’ kara vairagya vidhana No longer will you seem more handsome by wearing different ornaments. Now, your body will look just like a monkey. Where is your big mirror? Where is your suit? Think upon this and cultivate detachment. (19) ataeva ei-kshane chala bhai vrindavane nitya-sukha paibe tathaya krishna-prema nitya-sukha kabhu nahi deya duhkha acyuta padapi yate paya Therefore brother, let us go to Vrindavana right now! You will discover eternal happiness there. The eternal happiness of krishna-prema never causes any misery. Through it, you will become imperishable.

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(20) tava aprakrita deha vrindavane pabeÂ geha jada-deha jadete rahibe panchatva apanna hale deha rabe ei sthale tumi vraja kabhu na chhadibe You will attain a divine form and a residence in Vrindavana. Your material body will remain in this temporal world. When the five material elements of your body dissipate and you die, your body will remain here, but you will never leaveÂ Vraja. (21) kahe kedaranatha datta ei vrindavana tattva guru mora chaitanya gosai tara dasa sanga hale jade chitta nahiÂ chale chaitanya ashraya kara bhai Kedarnath Datta describes the reality of Sri Vrindavana. Sri Chaitanya Gosai is my guru. When you attain the association of His servitors, your consciousness will never deviate towards matter. O brother! Take shelter of Sri Chaitanya! Written on July 18th, 1871 in Sri Puri-dhama.

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Taraka- Brahma Yoga The Yoga of the Supreme

Excerpt from Chapter eight of Bhagavad gita, with the Anuvrtti Commentary of Swami Narasingha

VERSE 5 nirman-moha jita-sanga-dosha adhyatma-nitya vinivritta-kamah dvandvair vimuktah sukha-duhkha-sanjnair gacchanty-amudhah padam avyayam tat Free from pride, illusion and bad association, dedicated to spiritual pursuits, forsaking lust, unburdened by the dualities of happiness and distress â&#x20AC;&#x201C; such wise persons attain the eternal realm. VERSE 6 na tad bhasayate suryo na shashanko na pavakah yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama My Supreme Abode is not illumined by sun, moon or fire. Once attaining that abode, one never returns. VERSE 7 mamaivamsho jiva-loke jiva-bhutah sanatanah manah shashthanindriyani prakritisthani karshati The living beings of this world are My eternal particles. These living beings struggle with the five senses and the mind, the sixth sense within. VERSE 8 shariram yad avapnoti yacchapy-utkramatishvarah grihitvaitani samyati vayur gandhan ivashayat Whenever the individual being, the master of the body, accepts or gives up a material body, his senses and mind follow him to the next body, just as the wind carries a fragrance from its source.

Anuvritti

Perfection in bhakti-yoga, or Krishna consciousness, is not achieved without striving to be free from false pride and illusion. To achieve this one should keep company with likeminded persons in pursuit of the Absolute Truth. In other words one should give up bad association. asat-sanga tyaga – ei vaishnava-achara stri sangi – eka asadhu krishnabhakta ara A Vaishnava (bhakti-yogi) should always avoid bad association, those who are materially attached, who are addicted to illicit sex and intoxication and who are not interested in the cultivation of the Absolute Truth. (Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila 22.87) The Supreme Abode of Sri Krishna is the final destination of the bhakti-yogi and Krishna says that His abode is not illuminated by sun, moon or fire. Not illuminated by sun, moon or fire means that the Supreme Abode is beyond the reach of the darkness that exists in

the material world. In the Supreme Abode of Krishna, known by great self-realized yogis as Goloka Vrindavana, everything is filled with the self-effulgence of Krishna. na tatra suryo bhati na chandra-tarakam nema vudyuto bhanti kuto’yam agnih tam eva bhantam anubhati sarvam tasya bhasa sarvam idam vibhati The sun does not shine there, nor the moon, nor the stars, nor does lightning shine. How then can fire burn? When Krishna shines, all these shine. Through His effulgence He illuminates everything. (Katha Upanishad 2.2.15) Krishna also says that once attaining that Supreme Abode, one never returns to this world of birth and death. The material world is filled with unlimited fallibilities, but the Supreme Abode is infallible. The fallibility of the material world includes envy, greed, lust, hate, vengefulness etc. but these material qualities cannot enter the abode of Krishna. Some thinkers have postulated that the living beings in this material world have originally fallen from their eternal position in the Supreme Abode. Such persons are known as ‘fallvadis’. According to the thinking of the ‘fall-vadis’, the Supreme Abode is fallible and subject to envy, dissatisfaction, greed, hate and so on. The word ‘fallible’ comes from the Latin word fallere that means ‘to deceive’. In order to deceive there must be ignorance, forgetfulness and suspicion etc. However, considering that no material qualities exist in the Supreme Abode, it is not possible for any liberated living being there to become contaminated by material qualities. Krishna says that once going to that abode one never returns to the material world (yad gatva na nivartante). Krishna does not say that again going or returning to that Supreme Abode then one never returns. Therefore, it is understood by Krishna’s own words that no one falls from the Supreme Abode. All living beings in the spiritual and material worlds are eternally Krishna’s parts and particles – mamaivamsho jiva-loke jiva-bhutah sanatanah. However, the living beings who are conditioned by material nature and who have no control of their senses or knowledge of the Supreme Abode, are again and again reborn to the world of birth and death. At the time of death they are carried away to their next body by sense desires and the mind, just as the fragrance is carried by the wind.

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Today we are celebrating the appearance day of Lord Sri Krishna. Krishna appeared 5237 years ago. That makes the birthday of Krishna the oldest celebrated religious festival in human history. Not only is it the oldest, but it is the original basis of many religious stories told in Buddhism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism and many other different religions around the world. The first story of God coming on this earth is the story of Krishna. We have that story of Krishna because it was recorded in the Srimad Bhagavatam 5000 years ago. There is also another book, written around the same time called the Hari-vamsha. The spiritual knowledge and wisdom around Krishna is explained in the Bhagavata Purana. But there are many little details, because Krishna did not come alone. When God appears in this world, He comes with His brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, His whole dynasty, many friends – He brings His whole village. The details of all that are in the book Hari-vamsha. There are so many details of Krishna – what food He likes, what clothes He likes to wear, what musical instruments He plays, what battles He fought, what language He speaks. That is the first question – when God came to this world, what

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language did He speak? He appeared in India, but in India there are many languages. The answer is that He spoke your language! Whatever language you spoke, that’s the one He spoke. He even spoke the language of the animals. Krishna had many pets – cows, deer, and horses, even dogs – and He could speak to all of them in their own language. So many of these details are in the book Hari-vamsha and today we will discuss some of those details. I am not here today to convince you that Krishna is God. You may need to know more about why we say that Krishna is God, but today I am not going to discuss those things. We are going to talk about some of the details such as who was Krishna’s mother, who was Krishna’s father etc. But the details are complicated. I can barely keep up with my own family – what to say of Krishna’s? Krishna’s family is very complex. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that Krishna comes whenever there is a decline in religious principles. He comes in every age (yuge yuge). Krishna is known as a great actor, like in a drama, so when Krishna comes He often comes in various disguises. He doesn’t always come as the original Krishna – He comes as avataras. Sometimes Krishna shows His full power, and sometimes He only shows a part of His power. Whenever Krishna comes in human society, He has a mother and a father. He selects who will be His mother and who will be His father from His devotees. But the interesting part of the story is that Krishna has an original mother and

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father also. The original mother and father of Krishna are known as Yashoda and Nanda. So, 5237 years ago Krishna appeared in this world with Yashoda and Nanda as His parents. But at the very same moment, He accepted another mother and father known as Vasudeva and Devaki. Generally the story is simplified and we are told that Krishna was born with one mother and one father, but that is not the detailed story. Krishna appeared in the village of Vrindavana and His mother was Yashoda and at the exact same moment, Krishna appeared in Mathura and His mother was Devaki. The Krishna born in Vrindavana is known as Svayam Bhagavan – the original Krishna. The Krishna that appeared in Mathura is Vishnu. The most striking difference between Krishna and Vshnu is that Krishna is dvi-bhuja (two handed) and Vshnu is chatur-bhuja (four handed). There are also other forms of God and if we see them, we will run away in fear. But those who see Krishna, the original beautiful form of God, runs towards Krishna in love. Krishna is the most lovable object in our life. Yashoda and Nanda are always the mother and father of Krishna. When Krishna comes to this world, He sends His mother and father first and they are born. Then, when the time is perfect, Krishna appears from His mother, just like the sun rising out of the ocean. His birth is a miracle. When this happened over 5000 years ago, this story spread all over the world. That story entered different cultures and different religions and thus you will find in different places around the world the story of God appearing on this earth. But His birth is a miracle. We must understand that we are born in a certain way, but Krishna is born differently. We are born due to our karma, but Krishna does not come due to karma. He simply appears. Then the dream begins and Krishna’s mother thinks, “Oh, I have given birth to this baby.” When Krishna came in this way to Mother Yashoda, He also brought His sister at the same time. Mother Yashoda then fell asleep and everyone in the house also slept, and in the bed with Yashoda was baby Krishna and a baby girl. Now in Mathura, a big drama had been going on for a long time. Vasudeva and Devaki had been put in prison by Kamsa and they had been there for many years. Whenever any children were born to them in prison, Kamsa

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would come and kill the baby immediately. Devaki was the sister of Kamsa. The reason Devaki and Vasudeva were in prison was because of this – on the day of Devaki’s marriage to Vasudeva, Kamsa put his sister and her husband into his chariot to take them to their new home. Suddenly there was a sound from the skies. A great voice declared, “Kamsa, you are such a fool! You are proudly driving the chariot with your sister, but her eighth son is going to kill you!” Now Kamsa was not a good man. He was a thousand times worse than today’s politicians! He was greedy, evil and violent. He was an asura – a demon. When Kamsa heard this voice, he was shocked. He grabbed his sister’s hair, pulled out his sword and attempted to cut off her head. He was thinking that, “If I kill my sister, she will have no children, then there is no chance of her eighth son killing me.” But Vasudeva immediately grabbed him, “What are you doing? Would you kill your own sister? People will wonder what type of man you are! You will get such a poor reputation. “ It was a very critical situation with Kamsa, so finally Vasudeva said, “You don’t have to worry about her. When any children are born, I will bring them to you immediately and you can kill them.” Vasudeva spoke many flattering words to Kamsa to cool his anger and he made this very extreme promise. After a year had passes, Devaki gave birth to a son and Vasudeva brought the baby to Kamsa but he told him, “This is the first baby, but your

problem is with the eighth child.” S let them keep their son. But then happened – it was already strange stranger! Narada Muni came to see thought, “This king is so evil and h so much suffering to innocent peop up his karma!” It was also said that t be Krishna, and Krishna had killed life. Kamsa’s name in his previous Narada Muni told him that, “The Krishna, your old enemy, and He w can’t trust Krishna – He may come a the third. It’s better you kill all the c

So Kamsa agreed and a very strange thing but it’s going to get e Kamsa and Narada he is already causing ple. We need to speed the eighth son would Kamsa in a previous birth was Kalanemi. e eighth son will be will kill you. But you as the second son, or children.”

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Actually, nothing happens by accident. Even an accident is ultimately not an accident. Life is complicated and it involves previous lifetimes. You have things in this world because you have an education and you work, but that is not everything. You have things because of what you did in a previous life, in ten previous lives, in one hundred previous lives. This life is complicated. After talking to Narada, Kamsa arrested his sister and her husband and put them in prison. Every year, as children were born, he killed them in the prison. If we examine the story at this point, it is clear that Kamsa is evil. But a saint was the one who gave the suggestion to him to kill all the children! So the question arises, who were these poor children? Why were they killed What was their karma? When Kamsa was Kalenemi in his previous birth, the children of Devaki that he was killing were his own sons. Their grandfather was Hiranyakashipu, one of the greatest demons ever known in the universe. He cursed his own grandsons that they would take birth and they would be killed in that way. This is the family business of demons – they don’t even have good wishes for their own children. So these first six children were previously the six sons of Kalanemi and Kamsa killed them all. He was killing his own children. Then the seventh son appeared. This was Krishna’s brother, Balarama. In India Balarama is very famous. He

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is also kn power of born, so a miscarr same tim the same

In Vrind sleep. Th in glorifi understa broom o

After he the worl sleep. W all the lo prison. I crossed t whole ar the door up and r prison an

So now into the house w Yashoda girl. But have all b

Meanwh crying a Devaki t eighth so

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nown as Sankarshana. Ananta is His expansion. But Krishna told Yogamaya, the spiritual f Krishna who helps create the lila of Krishna, “Take My brother to Vrindavana before He is that He does not have to face Kamsa.” Everyone in the prison thought that Devaki had had riage. The next year, on this day, on the lunar calendar, Krishna appeared in two places at the me. He came to Mother Yashoda as a baby with two arms, and with His sister. In Mathura, at e moment, Krishna also appeared as Vshnu with four arms.

davana, after seeing Krishna, Yashoda slept. But in Mathura, Vasudeva and Devaki didn’t They understood that, “Bhagavan has become our son!” Vasudeva and Devaki offered prayers fication of the Lord. If we study those prayers, we can clearly understand who is God. If we and who is God, we will automatically understand who is not God! We will immediately out so many bogus bhagavans.

earing their prayers, Vishnu took the form of baby Krishna. At that moment, everybody in ld slept. Nobody was awake. When you have had a successful day, you are able to have a good When God appears on the earth, everyone has a good sleep, even the demons. At that time, ocks on the prison door opened and Vasudeva picked up baby Krishna and walked out of the It was flood season and he came to the river Yamuna which parted and Vasudeva and Krishna the river. He then came to the village where Yashoda and Nanda lived. Generally we call that rea as Vrindavana, but that village is actually known as Gokula. Vasudeva entered that house, r opened and he saw Mother Yashoda sleeping. He saw one little baby girl and he picked her replaced her with Krishna. Then he crossed the Yamuna, returned to Mathura, entered the nd immediately the all doors closed again.

there are two Krishnas in the bed with Yashoda. The Vshnu-avatara from Mathura entered body of the original Krishna and they became one. Then at that moment, everyone in the woke up, heard the baby crying and they all came running to see. For a moment, Mother thought, “Where is the girl?” because she remembered that there were twins – a boy and a t when she saw the beauty of Krishna, she forgot about everything and thought that it must been a dream.

hile, in Mathura, that baby girl began to cry and everybody woke up. The guards heard the and ran to Kamsa to tell him that the eighth child had been born. When Kamsa entered, told him, “This is your niece. Please don’t kill this girl. You are in danger from a boy – the on was supposed to kill you. This is a girl.” But no – he pushed them down, grabbed the baby

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by the feet and Kamsa, stood i This goddess ha â&#x20AC;&#x153;You are a bigg Then she disap sons, but this c horrible things

Kamsa then ap home. Some ti not to be truste kingdom up to remember the other is a dupli

So due to bad sixteen years. Th named Putana. kingdom. But w more children. by one, Krishn father being loc wrestlers and fi He set His mot

These activities we can be freed from a differen original place.Â K by His knowled particularly in God. Then we then that is alri Then they will

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he prepared to smash her head on the wall. Suddenly, that baby slipped out of the hand of in the sky and took the form of Goddess Durga with sixteen arms holding many weapons. as many names – Durga, Bhadra, Bhadrakali – she has many names. She chastised Kamsa, ger fool than we thought! The one who has been born to kill you has already appeared!” ppeared into the sky. Kamsa had killed the six sons of Devaki who were previously his own could not change his destiny. The will of God is above everything. He had done many s, but he had changed nothing.

pologized to his sister and brother-in-law and allowed them to leave the prison and return ime later, Kamsa’s associates came to him and told him that Vasudeva and Devaki were ed. They suggested that they should be imprisoned again and all the children in the whole o ten years old should be killed. Anybody here who knows the Jesus story will immediately same thing happened in Judea. The only difference is that this is the original story. The icate.

company, Kamsa arrested his sister and her husband again and put them in prison for Then he started a campaign to kill all the children. For this program he employed one friend . She came to poison Krishna, but Krishna killed her and saved all the children in the whole when Putana was killed, at once Kamsa knew where Krishna was. He didn’t need to kill any For sixteen years Kamsa sent powerful demons with magic powers to kill Krishna, but one na killed them all. After sixteen years, Krishna came to know about His other mother and cked up in prison by Kamsa, so He went to Mathura. There, He fought with elephants and finally He fought with Kamsa, and with His left hand He hit Kamsa and killed him. Then ther and father free.

s are known as krsna-lila and by hearing krsna-lila we can be freed from karma. This means d from suffering. All of you today have come from your homes; some of you have even come nt country to this place. This means that you have an original place – Krishna also has an Krishna says that He is God and He shows it – not once or twice, but many, many times dge, His activities, by His power, by every means He proves that He is God. But nowadays, India over the last fifty years or so, like to imitate Krishna. They like to say that they are read in the newspapers that such-and-such bhagavan went to hospital. If we go to hospital, ight – we are humans so we may have to go to hospital. But in India, God goes to hospital! say that, “That is his lila!” What fool wants to go to a hospital? Nobody!

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It should also be noted that Krishna was on this earth for 125 years. Sixteen years He was in Vrindavana and that is known as His lila of youth. Vrindavana is known as the original home of Krishna, and that eternal home of Krishna is beyond our temporary time/space reality. One of the characteristics of God is that He doesn’t grow old. Have you ever seen a picture of Krishna as an old man? He is nava-yauvana – ever youthful. This year I went to the Vatican and I saw pictures of ‘God’ there. He had white hair, a big white beard and wrinkled skin. Now what if you were God? Would you like to be old or young? It is obvious – we would want to be youthful. There are many ideas of God, but the original idea is Krishna and He is always youthful, He is never old. And when God wants to remove your sin, He just does it. He doesn’t have to die or suffer to do it. At Kurukshetra, Krishna was 55, but when he is with Arjuna at Kurukshetra He looks like a sixteen-year-old boy. He has no moustache or beard because He never grows old. These are some of the wonderful aspects of Sri Krishna. Sri Krishna Bhagavan ki jaya!

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Sri Krishna Janmas at Govindaji Gardens

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satami A selection of photos from last years festival.

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Real Religi

During a Gaudiya Whirling â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;surrende like to po substanc popular r in ancien

The first pranitam relations dharma, living en deities or Bhaktisid present m loyalty to 1928)

In a inn w

I q

ion

is Not Man-Made

- Swami B.G. Narasingha

a recent visit to Europe I had some informal discussions about religious conceptions with other a Vaisnavas and I was surprised to hear some devotees speak about such groups as the Sufis, g Dervishes, Jews, Christians, Catholics, Orthodox Christians and Muslims as being deeply ered’ souls. Of course, generally speaking this may be true – but surrendered to what? I would oint out in this article that sraddha [faith], saranagati [surrender] and seva (service) are spiritual ces and activities that are only transcendental when in direct connection to Krsna and that the religions of today’s world are but the continuation of a Vedic heresy that began long, long ago nt times.

t point is that dharma (real religion] is given by God himself – dharman tu saksat bhagavat m. Real religion is not man-made. Dharma is the knowledge and activities of the intrinsic ship that exists between Krsna and all living entities eternally. This is sometimes called sanatanaeternal religious principles. In a word sanatana-dharma has been summed up as seva, or the ntities relationship of service to the Supreme Being. Therefore, so-called service to various r to icons that are conjured by man can never be considered seva in the true sense of the word. ddhanta Sarasvati Thakura once commented on the situation of spirituality in India that, “At many false meanings have been imported into the word devotion. Regard for one’s parents, o man, obedience to the teacher, etc, pass as bhakti.” (Sarasvati Thakura, lecture, Vrndavana

a similar way one can say about western spirituality that all sorts of misconceptions and novations have also been passed off as spiritual practices, devotion, service, love of God, etc, when in fact they are not.

In Sanskrit the root word bhaj means to serve. Bhaktivinoda Thakura has pointed out by quoting the Garuda Purana in Bhakti-Tattva-Viveka, Ch.1 as follows:

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“The word bhakti is derived from the root verb form bhaj. It is said in the Garuda Purana (Purva-khanda 231.3) bhaj ityesa vai dhatuh sevayam parikirtitah tasmat seva budhaih prokta bhaktih sadhana-bhuyasi “The verbal root bhaj means to render service. Therefore, thoughtful sadhakas should engage in the service of Sri Krsna with great endeavor, for it is only by such service that bhakti is born.” The basis of dharma is rooted in transcendental knowledge of the soul (atma), the Supersoul (Paramatma) and the Personality of Godhead (Bhagavan). In reality no such knowledge of the soul, the Supersoul or the Personality of Godhead exists in the world’s popular mundane religions. Therefore, intelligent human beings do not accept the popular mundane religions as transcendental. Referring to the scriptures of the world’s religions in the west, Sarasvati Thakura commented as follows: “Senselessly killing living beings simply for the purpose of pleasure is fundamental to all these religions. Unlike the transcendental words of the Vedas, none of these paths are eternal. Therefore, one who deliberates upon these scriptures will naturally develop doubt about them since they lack a solid foundation.” (Sarasvati Thakura, purport, Cc. Adi 17.169)

“Senselessly killing living beings simply words of the Vedas, none of these paths doubt about them since they lack a solid

Additionally, sraddha and saranagati (f pariprasnena sevaya. This surrender mea thought. Surrender means, complete ob then serving mood (sevaya) manifests. A

If one believes in a particular concepti Absolute Truth, then according to sast fabricated under the modes of material

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for the purpose of pleasure is fundamental to all these religions. Unlike the transcendental s are eternal. Therefore, one who deliberates upon these scriptures will naturally develop d foundation.â&#x20AC;? (Sarasvati Thakura, purport, Cc. Adi 17.169)

faith and surrender) presuppose seva. First surrender, then serve: tad viddhi pranipatena ans far more than oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strict obedience to a master or teacher of a particular technique or bedience to the will of Krsna and not to that of anything else. First surrender (pranipatena) And to surrender one must have faith, sraddha.

ion or philosophy that is not a bona-fide siddhanta, or an axiomatic truth regarding the tra (laws and by-laws of dharm) such so-called belief is only a temporary state of mind nature. Such a mental belief system is not to be confused with sraddha.

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“By performing transcendental loving service to Krsna, one automatically performs all secondary ac that is favorable to the execution of devotional service is known as sraddha.” (Cc. Madhya 22.62) Real sraddha is not a state of mind influenced by the modes of nature. Sraddha is an influence over the heart that confirms to the living entity the path of devotional service, krsna-bhakti. Bhaktivinoda Thakura has written the following in this regard in his Mahaprabhur Siksa, ch 10. The definition of sraddha is this: sraddhah sabde visvasa kahe sudrdha niscaya krsne bhakti kaile sarva karma krta haya “By performing transcendental loving service to Krsna, one automatically performs all secondary activities. This confident, firm faith, that is favorable to the execution of devotional service is known as sraddha.” (Cc. Madhya 22.62) To have firm conviction that devotion to Krsna is the only means for the living entity, and that performance of karma and jnana devoid of bhakti are useless. Such a favorable inclination of the heart is called sraddha.

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ctivities. This confident, firm faith, Sraddha is a purely spiritual illumination that emanates from the internal energy of Godhead, the hladini-sakti, Sraddha-devi. This energy as it is, knows no Lord and master other than Krsna and therefore sraddha does not come to the living entities to reveal any lesser gods or masters. As Srila Sridhara Maharaja has said, “Sraddha is the halo of Srimati Radharani and saranagati is the halo of Krsna.” Sraddha reveals Krsna (Visnu) and no other. However, if one finds oneself following or appreciating man-made religions, such as those of the Abrahamic tradition, then this is due to one’s own misfortune and karma and not due to the guiding revelations of sraddha. In brief, sraddha has been described by some of Gaudiya Vaisnava’s greatest acaryas as the halo of Srimati Radharani and the firm conviction that by serving Krsna all other purposes will be served.

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The numerous so-called religions of the world that exist outside the Vedic system are not transcendental because they have no real connection to the Absolute Truth. Over time the proponents of these major world religions have done much harm to the world and deceived a multitude of people by engaging them in impious activities and all in the name of ‘good faith.’ If one deeply studies western theology and the history of religion one will discover that all contemporary religious thought has originated from the time of the RgVedic civilization. These religious thoughts however did not come to the world as wholesome theology but rather as a Vedic heresy. The first heresy of this kind was Zoroastrianism that gained a following in the western frontiers of the Rg-Vedic civilization, namely in Iran, before the RgVeda was written.

“Sraddha is the halo of Srimati Radharani and saranagati is the halo of Krsna.”

Zoroaster the founder of Zoroastrianism preached a doctrine of monotheism but he did not accept the monotheistic God (Visnu) of the Vedas. Zoroaster instead put forward the worship of the Asuras (demons) and proposed Ahura [Asura] Mazda as the Supreme Deity. Zoroaster also created other anti-Vedic conceptions to embellish his new religion and Bhaktivinoda Thakura explains them in Tattva-viveka: “Zarathustra (Zoroaster) is a very ancient philosopher. When his philosophy found

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no honor in India, Zarathustra preached in Iran. It was by the influence of Zarathustra’s ideas that Satan, an equally powerful rival to God, made his imaginary appearance first in the religion of the Jews and then in the religion based on the Koran. Then, influenced by Zarathustra’s idea of two Gods, the idea of three gods, or a ‘Trinity’ made its appearance in the religion (Christianity) that had come from the Jewish religion. “At first, three separate gods were concocted in the philosophy of Trinity. Later, learned scholars were no longer satisfied with this, so they made a compromise stating that these three concocted gods were God, the Holy Ghost, and Christ.” (Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Tattva-viveka 1/21) Several thousand years after Zoroaster, in approximately 500 BCE, the Persian Empire brought the Zoroastrian ideas of monotheism to Judea. In Judea the Jews abandoned their many pagan deities and adopted the idea of one God whom they called Yaweh, the tribal god of the Mountains or the god of Abraham. The idea that there is one Supreme God took hold in Judea but, as with the followers of Zoroastar, who the Supreme God was eluded them. Prior to that time all Mediterranean cultures of the ancient world had been pagan in their beliefs. From monotheism, first being introduced into Judaism by the Persians, later Christianity developed and then Islam developed along those lines. But in no case was the nature, characteristics and personality of Godhead clearly known. In some circles of western Vaisnavas, ideas abound about personalities such as Jesus Christ being an incarnation of Lord Brahma, Lord Balarama or even Srila Prabhupada being an incarnation of Jesus. These ideas have no sastric basis and devotees should be cautious about accepting ideas and conclusions that are contrary to the opinions of previous acaryas. Thus, all the so-called religions west of the Indus River can rightfully be called a heresy, of a heresy, of a heresy of the Vedic religion. This continuous unfolding of man, adding to and subtracting from real religion, is a process that continues to the present day in the name of the Protestant Church and New Age Religions. Unfortunately, none of these said heresies represent the Supreme Godhead, or do anything except deceive the living entities about the ultimate goal of life.

Vaishnavism & Religious Equality - Gaura-Gopala

History shows us that numerous religions and cults existed throughout the ancient world. Some, such as those of the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Mayans, Olmecs, Phoenicians, Babylonians and Assyrians were practiced for thousands of years and affected vast numbers of people. However they all have one thing in common - they were prevalent for a period of time but ultimately faded away and only exist today in our history books. Despite the predictions of their priests, the fervor of their prayers and the conviction of their followers, they did not carry on into eternity. At present, the vast majority of theists in the world count themselves as followers of the three Abrahamic religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism. In relation to some of the religious systems that preceded them, these Abrahamic faiths are still quite young. The oldest of the three, Judaism, was formulated sometime between 400-200 BCE. However, this is very recent in terms of human history on this planet. Arguments to set the roots of these three religions with Abraham (approx. 1800 BCE) and other Old Testament prophets have been disproven by modern scholars due to a lack of any tangible evidence. Despite their claims of being the eternal word of God, these Abrahamic religions, just like their predecessors, can be traced back to a human source. Everything that is born in this temporary world has a beginning and an end. Therefore at some point in the future they will suffer the same fate as all the man-made religions that came before them. However, long before the Greeks built their temples to Apollo, before the cult of Osiris came into existence, before the Assyrians began their worship of Ashur, the Vedic culture of India was thriving with its timeless system of self-realization. Archaeological evidence has proven the worship of Vishnu/Krishna predates all known religions of the world. While the man-made belief systems of this world will come and go as they always have, Vedic knowledge comes from an eternal source and thus, will continue to exist in the future.

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The Vedas are known as apaurusheya or untainted by the faulty senses of mortal man. Unlike other religious scriptures, the Vedas are not attributed to any author; they do not point to a higher source of knowledge and their texts have not been altered or revised. Srila Vyasadeva is well known as the compiler of the Vedas in their written form, but he does not claim credit as the author of this vast body of knowledge. This knowledge originates from its eternal source outside of this temporal realm. While the Vaishnavas have put emphasis on certain portions of the Vedas that pertain to self-realization and the worship of Krishna, the whole canon of Vedic knowledge is creditable. The core of Vedic literature describes in minute detail the nature of the soul and our eternal relationship with God. Yet we find that the theology found in other religions mainly deals with basic morality and doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t evolve beyond that. Despite all this, some modern practitioners of Vaishnavism (perhaps due to sentimental attachment to previous beliefs) find it necessary to augment their devotional disciplines with practices and ideas from other religions. They feel the need to include such things as Buddhist meditation techniques, alternative readings of the Bible, and studies on the lives of various holy men of other faiths. Beyond this, many Vaishnavas engage in interfaith discourses in order to find similarities between the eternal Vaishnava system of sanatana-dharma and the temporary man-made religions of this world. They hope that such comparisons will accord them broad acceptance in modern society. Yet ultimately, such mundane comparisons are a compromise of faith and will only dilute the essential teachings of sanatana-dharma. Such dialogue can only be maintained on a very superficial level because when one analyses the teachings of these various faiths, any philosophical equality is out of the question. The inevitable result of interfaith discussion will be the practitioner of Vaishnavism trying to equate Krishna with the deities worshipped in these Abrahamic religions. After analyzing the nature of these Abrahamic gods, a true Vaishnava would find such comparisons nonsensical at the very least and offensive at best. Even one quote about the God of Abraham from the books of these religions should be enough to convince any discerning devotee that the sweet personality Sri Krishna is incomparable and cannot be associated with these fabricated deities. For the benefit of the reader we have included a few comparative quotes from the Abrahamic scriptures and the Vaishnava texts.

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From there Elisha went up to Bethel. While he was on his way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him. “Go up baldhead,” they shouted, “Go up baldhead!” The prophet turned and saw them, and he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the children to pieces. (2 Kings 2:23-24) In contrast with this contemptible and merciless scenario where ‘God’ sends bears to tear little children to pieces due to the whimsical curse of his servant, the following two quotes are from Vaishnava shastra regarding the nature of a true devotee of God. Krishna does not condone capricious acts of violence and expects His devotees to tolerate all insults and to reject identification with the material body. ati-vadams titiksheta navamanyeta kanchana na chemam deham ashritya vairam kurvita kenachit One should tolerate all insults and never fail to show proper respect to any person. Avoiding identification with the material body, one should not create enmity with anyone. (Bhag. 12.6.34) sri-bhagavan uvacha kripalur akrita-drohas titikshu˙ sarva-dehinam satya-saro ‘nvadyatma sama˙ sarvopakaraka˙ The Lord said: O Uddhava, a saintly person is merciful and never injures others. Even if others are aggressive he is tolerant and forgiving toward all living entities. His strength and meaning in life come from the truth itself, he is free from all envy and jealousy, and his mind is equal in material happiness and distress. Thus, he dedicates his time to work for the welfare of all others.

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Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me. (Exodus 20.5) That the Jewish nation is the only nation selected by God, while all the remaining ones are contemptible and hateful. (The Talmud, Zohar Vayshlah 177b) In contrast to the above quotes where God is described as jealous and racist, Krishna has clearly stated below that He is impartial, equal to all and does envy any person: samo ‘ham sarva-bhuteshu na me dveshyo ‘sti na priya˙  ye bhajanti tu mam bhaktya mayi te teshu chapy aham I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him. (Gita 9.21) Lo! Those who disbelieve our revelations, we shall expose them to the fire. As often as their skins are consumed we shall exchange them for fresh skins that they may taste the torment again. Lo! Allah is ever Mighty and Wise. (Quran 4.56) roma-kupa-bhramat-koti-koti-brahmanda-mandala prasuva aga˙-sahana jagan-matar jagat-pita˙ O Krishna, millions of universes emanate from the pores of Your transcendental body. O father and mother of the universe, just as a mother tolerates the offenses of her children, You tolerate the offenses of the living entities. (Krishna-lila-stava 39.154) These are just a few comparisons to show how dissimilar these conceptions of God are with Sri Krishna. Are these really the words of God? Are these even the words of a civilized nation? Although the Bible states in the Book of Genesis that man was created in the image of God, it would seem from his flawed character that the God of Abraham was actually created in the image of man – a man who is jealous, vindictive,

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unforgiving, bloodthirsty, racist and genocidal. There are no divine characteristics to be found in him whatsoever. He can only be compared with a malevolent and delinquent child who has been given super powers over mankind. Is there any comparison to be made with Krishna here? A religion that after thousands of years has not understood the fundamental nature of God does not deserve to stand next to Vaishnavism. Why is there any need to seek acceptance from religions professing to be religions of peace, that have been spread through violence, intimidation and corruption? The practitioner of Vaishnavism has a veritable banquet of spiritual understanding within his grasp – so why should he go grubbing around for nourishment in the dumpster? When one seeks acceptance from these religions it validates their false philosophies and misrepresents the path of sanatana-dharma. The defining reason why Vaishnavas should maintain their identity separate from other religious beliefs is that Vaishnavas are personalists. The Vaishnava philosophy teaches a message of a personal and individual God who is knowable and captivating. All other faiths, whether it is Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Jainism, Sikhism or Hinduism, teach a non-personal idea of God. To them God is either unknowable, unattainable, one with everything and everyone or simply does not exist. Impersonalism (nirvisheshavada) and voidism (shunyavada) are the complete antithesis of Vaishnava philosophy. For Vaishnavas to try and find theological similarities and claim that ‘all roads lead to Rome’ is to belittle the teachings and activities of the entire parampara. This is not to incite hatred towards people of other faiths but to promote real knowledge and real understanding free from misguided ideas. With such a wealth of knowledge and understanding it is the duty of all Vaishnavas to share this with others. Sharing the knowledge of Krishna and showing the example of what the human form of life is meant for is a real example of interfaith relations. The Krishna conception is the pinnacle of theism in it’s purest form. It does not need to be augmented or altered to fit. Without a doubt full satisfaction will be found in the pure teachings of Sri Krishna.

Temples of

Kall ahalli Sri Bh

The Indian state of Karnataka is home to many famous temples, built during the Hoysala period, the Vijayanagara period, the Chalukya period etc. However, there are also other ancient deities and temples, some of which date back even to Puranic times. In this section of Gaudiya Touchstone, we will look at some of these lesser known temples and discover the history behind them.

Karnataka

hu-Var ahanatha

- Rasikananda

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In this issue - Sri Bhu-Va

Kallahalli vi with the riv

Kallahalli a were later t Kingdom.

This region performed lost in a fore place. At fir rabbit turne some signi discovered Muni. King

The grand is the third devi (Moth dedicated t

The Deity o and chakra devotees. T on His back

The origina guardiansh hardly anyo approached him to take being built

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e we feature a beautiful temple situated at Kallahalli, Krishnarajapet taluk near Mysore arahanatha.

illage is situated on the right bank of the Hemavati River.Â The temple itself is on a hill vers Kaveri, Hemavati and Lakshmana-tirtha at its feet.

and the surrounding areas were once ruled by the Ganga Dynasty of Talakad, and taken over by the Hoysalas, then the Vijayanagara empire and finally the Wodeyar

n is known to be a holy place (punya-kshetra) where 2,000 years ago the sage Gautama austerities. It is said that much later, King Veera Ballala of the Hoysala Dynasty got est while he was on a hunting trip. While he rested under a tree, a strange event took rst he saw a dog chasing a rabbit, but as soon they reached a particular place, the ed around and started chasing the dog. Looking at this, the King felt there had to be ificance there for this type ofÂ incident to take place. He dug up the whole area and d the Deity of Bhu-Varahanatha, that had previously been worshiped by Gautama Veera Ballala then built a temple and started worshipping the Deity.

Deity of Bhu-Varahanatha is certainly unique because it is over 15ft high. Varaha d avatara of Krishna who appeared in the form of a boar, in order to rescue Bhuher Earth) from the demon Hiranyaksha. There are very few temples in India that are to this form of the Lord.

of Lord Varaha faces east with Bhu-devi sitting on His lap. Two of His hands hold sankha a and another holds a lotus while showing abhaya-mudra granting fearlessness to His This Deity is made from shalagrama-shila and He has the mark of Sudarshana-chakra k.

al temple was constructed by King Veera Ballala, after which it came under the hip of the Wodeyar Kings of Mysore. For a long time, the temple was neglected and one came here, or even knew that it existed. Finally, some of the residents of Kallahalli d the acharya of Parakala Matha of the Sri Sampradaya, in Mysore and requested e an interest in the temple. Now, thanks to the Swamijiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s initiative, a new gopuram is t and surrounding walls are being constructed. 90

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Contact info: Address: Srimad Abhinava Vageesha Brahmatantra Swatantra Parakala Mutt, Krishnavilasa Road, Near Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore-570 001, Karnataka, India. e-mail: srilakshmivarahatemple@gmail.com Website: kallahallivarahanatha.com Phone: 0821-2422536

For more details on how to get to the temple click here

The Myth Aryan In

h nvasion of the

- Swami B.V. Giri

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Introduction

The aryan invasion theory has been one of the most controversial historical topics for well over a century. However, it should be pointed out that it remains just that – a theory. To date no hard evidence has proven the aryan invasion theory to be fact. In this essay we will explain the roots of this hypothesis and how, due to recent emergence of new evidence over the last couple of decades, the validity of the aryan invasion theory has been seriously challenged. It is indeed ironic that the origin of this theory does not lie in Indian records, but in 19th Century politics and German nationalism. No where in the Vedas, Puranas or Itihasas is there any mention of a Migration or Invasion of any kind. In 1841 M.S. Elphinstone, the first governor of the Bombay Presidency, wrote in his book History of India: ‘It is opposed to their (Hindus) foreign origin, that neither in the Code (of Manu) nor, I believe, in the Vedas, nor in any book that is certainly older than the code, is

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there any allusion to a prior residence or to a knowledge of more than the name of any country out of India. Even mythology goes no further than the Himalayan chain, in which is fixed the habitation of the gods... .To say that it spread from a central point is an unwarranted assumption, and even to analogy; for, emigration and civilization have not spread in a circle, but from east to west. Where, also, could the central point be, from which a language could spread over India, Greece, and Italy and yet leave Chaldea, Syria and Arabia untouched? There is no reason whatever for thinking that the Hindus ever inhabited any country but their present one, and as little for denying that they may have done so before the earliest trace of their records or tradition.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

The Birth of a Misconception Interest in the field of Indology during the 19th Century was of mixed motivations. Many scholars such as August Wilhelm von Schlegal, Hern Wilhelm von Humboldt, and Arthur Schopenhauer lauded praise upon the Vedic literatures and their profound wisdom, others were less than impressed. To accept that there was an advanced civilization outside the boundaries of Europe, at a time before the Patriarchs Abraham and Moses had made their covenant with the Almighty was impossible to conceive of for most European scholars, who harbored a strong Christian tendency. Most scholars of this period were neither archeologists nor historians in the strict sense of the word. Rather, they were missionaries paid by their governments to establish western cultural and racial superiority over the subjugated Indian citizens, through their study of the indigenous religious texts. Consequently, for racial, political and religious reasons, early European indologists created a myth that still survives to this day. It was established by linguists that Sanskrit, Iranian and European languages all belonged to the same family, categorizing them as â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Indo-Europeanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; languages. It was assumed that all these people originated from one homeland where they spoke

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a common language (which they called ‘Proto-Indo-European’ or PIE) which later developed into Sanskrit, Latin, Greek etc. They then needed to ascertain where this homeland was. By pure speculation, it was proposed that this homeland was either southeast Europe or Central Asia.

Harappa & Mohenjo-daro The discovery of ruins in the Indus Valley (Harappa and Mohenjo-daro) was considered by indologists like Wheeler as proof of their conjectures – that a nomadic tribe from foreign lands had plundered India. It was pronounced that the ruins dated back to a time before the Aryan Invasion, although this was actually never verified. By assigning a period of 200 years to each of the several layers of the pre-Buddhist Vedic literature, indologists arrived at a time frame of somewhere between 1500 and 1000BC for the Invasion of the Aryans. Using Biblical chronology as their sheet anchor, nineteenth century indologists placed the creation of the world at 4000BC1 and Noah’s flood at 2500BC. They thus postulated that the Aryan Invasion could not have taken place any time before 1500BC. Archeologists excavating the sites at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro found human skeletal remains; this seemed to them to be undeniable evidence that a large-scale massacre had taken place in these cities by the invading Aryan hordes. Prof. G. F. Dales (Former head of department of South-Asian Archaeology and Anthropology, Berkeley University, USA) in his ‘The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-daro’, states the following about this evidence: ‘What of these skeletal remains that have taken on such undeserved importance? Nine years of extensive excavations at Mohenjo-daro (1922-31) - a city of three miles in

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circuit - yielded the total of some 37 skeletons, or parts thereof, that can be attributed with some certainty to the period of the Indus civilizations. Some of these were found in contorted positions and groupings that suggest anything but orderly burials. Many are either disarticulated or incomplete. They were all found in the area of the Lower Town - probably the residential district. Not a single body was found within the area of the fortified citadel where one could reasonably expect the final defense of this thriving capital city to have been madeâ&#x20AC;ŚWhere are the burned fortresses, the arrow heads, weapons, pieces of armor, the smashed chariots and bodies of the invaders and defenders? Despite the extensive excavations at the largest Harappan sites, there is not a single bit of evidence that can be brought forth as unconditional proof of an armed conquest and the destruction on the supposed scale of the Aryan Invasion.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

Evidence from the Vedas It was therefore concluded that light-skinned nomads from Central Asia who wiped out the indigenous culture and enslaved or butchered the people, imposing their alien culture upon them had invaded the Indian subcontinent. They then wrote down their exploits in the form of the Rg Veda. This hypothesis was apparently based upon references in the Vedas that point to a conflict between the light-skinned Aryans and the dark-skinned Dasyus.2 This theory was strengthened by the archeological discoveries in the Indus Valley of the charred skeletal remains that we have mentioned above. Thus the Vedas became nothing more than a series of poetic tales about the skirmishes between two barbaric tribes.

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However, there are other references in the Rg Veda3 that point to India being a land of mixed races. The Rg Veda also states that “We pray to Indra to give glory by which the Dasyus will become Aryans.”4 Such a statement confirms that to be an Aryan was not a matter of birth. An inattentive skimming through the Vedas has resulted in a gross misinterpretation of social and racial struggles amongst the ancient Indians. North Aryans were pitted against the Southern Dravidians, high-castes against low-castes, civilized orthodox Indians against barbaric heterodox tribals. The hypothesis that of racial hatred between the Aryans and the dark-skinned Dasyus has no sastric foundation, yet some ‘scholars’ have misinterpreted texts to try to prove that there was racial hatred amongst the Aryans and Dravidians (such as the Rg Veda story of Indra slaying the demon Vrta5 ). Based on literary analysis, many scholars including B.G. Tilak, Dayananda Saraswati and Aurobindo dismissed any idea of an Aryan Invasion. For example, if the Aryans were foreign invaders, why is it that they don’t name places outside of India as their religious sites? Why do the Vedas only glorify holy placeswithin India?

What is an ‘Aryan’?

The Sanskrit word ‘Aryan’ refers to one who is righteous and noble. It is also used in the context of addressing a gentleman (Arya-putra, Aryakanya etc).6 Nowhere in the Vedic literature is the word used to denote race or language. This was a concoction by Max Mueller who, in 1853, introduced the word ‘Arya’ into the English language as referring a particular race and language. He did this in order to give credibility to his Aryan race theory (see Part 2). However in 1888, when challenged by other eminent scholars and historians, Mueller could see that his reputation was in jeopardy and made the following statement, thus refuting his own theory -

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“I have declared again and again that if I say Aryas, I mean neither blood nor bones, nor hair, nor skull; I mean simply those who speak an Aryan language...to me an ethnologist who speaks of Aryan race, Aryan blood, Aryan eyes and hair, is as great a sinner as a linguist who speaks of a dolichocephalic dictionary or a brachycephalic grammar.” (Max Mueller, Biographies of Words and the Home of the Aryas, 1888, pg 120) But the die had already been cast! Political and Nationalist groups in Germany and France exploited this racial phenomenon to propagate the supremacy of an assumed Aryan race of white people. Later, Adolf Hitler used this ideology to the extreme for his political hegemony and his barbaric crusade to terrorize Jews, Slavs and other racial minorities, culminating in the holocaust of millions of innocent people. According to Mueller’s etymological explanation of ‘Aryan’, the word is derived from ‘ar’ (to plough, to cultivate). Therefore Arya means ‘a cultivator, or farmer’. This is opposed to the idea that the Aryans were wandering nomads. V.S. Apte’s SanskritEnglish Dictionary relates the word Arya to the root ‘r-’ to which the prefix ‘a’ has been added in order to give a negating meaning. Therefore the meaning of Arya is given as ‘excellent, best’, followed by ‘respectable’ and as a noun, ‘master, lord, worthy, honorable, excellent,’ ‘upholder of Arya values, and further: teacher, employer, master, father-in-law, friend.’

No Nomads Kenneth Kennedy of Cornell University has recently proven that there was no significant influx of people into India during 4500 to 800BC. Furthermore it is impossible for sites stretching over one thousand miles to have all become simultaneously abandoned due to the Invasion of Nomadic Tribes. There is no solid evidence that the Aryans belonged to a nomadic tribe. In fact, to suggest that a nomadic horde of barbarians wrote books of such profound wisdom as the Vedas and Upanisads is nothing more than an absurdity and defies imagination. Although in the Rg Veda Indra is described as the ‘Destroyer of Cities,’ the same text mentions that the Aryan people themselves were urban dwellers with hundreds of cities of their own. They are mentioned as a complex metropolitan society with

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numerous professions and as a seafaring race. This begs the question, if the Aryans had indeed invaded the city of Harrapa, why did they not inhabit it after? Archeological evidence shows that the city was left deserted after the ‘Invasion’. Colin Renfrew, Prof. of Archeology at Cambridge, writes in his book Archeology and Language: The Puzzle of Indo-European Origins’ ‘It is certainly true that the gods invoked do aid the Aryas by over-throwing forts, but this does not in itself establish that the Aryas had no forts themselves. Nor does the fleetness in battle, provided by horses (who were clearly used primarily for pulling chariots), in itself suggest that the writers of these hymns were nomads. Indeed the chariot is not a vehicle especially associated with nomads’

Horses & Chariots

The Invasion Theory was linked to references of horses in the Vedas, assuming that the Aryans brought horses and chariots with them, giving military superiority that made it possible for them to conquer the indigenous inhabitants of India. Indologists tried to credit this theory by claiming that the domestication of the horse took place just before 1500BC. Their proof for this was that there were no traces of horses and chariots found in the Indus Valley. The Vedic literature nowhere mentions riding in battle and the word ‘asva’ for horse was often used figuratively for speed. Recent excavations by Dr.S.R. Rao have discovered both the remains of a horse from both the Late Harrapan Period and the Early Harrapan Period (dated before the supposed Invasion by the Aryans), and a clay model of a horse in Mohenjo-daro. Since Dr. Rao’s discoveries other archeologists have uncovered numerous horse bones of both domesticated and combat types. New discoveries in the Ukraine also proves that horse riding was prevalent as early as 4000BC – thus debunking the misconception that the Aryan nomads came riding into history after 2000BC.

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Another important point in this regard is that nomadic tribes do not use chariots. They are used in areas of flat land such as the Gangetic plains of Northern India. An Invasion of India from Central Asia would require crossing mountains and deserts – a chariot would be useless for such an exercise. Much later, further excavations in the Indus Valley (and pre-Indus civilizations) revealed horses and evidence of the wheel on the form of a seal showing a spoked wheel (as used on chariots).

An Iron Culture

Similarly, it was claimed that another reason why the Invading Aryans gained the upper hand was because their weapons were made of iron. This was based upon the word ‘ayas’ found in the Vedas, which was translated as iron. Another reason was that iron was not found in the Indus Valley region.

However, in other Indo-European languages, ayas refers to bronze, copper or ore. It is dubious to say that ayas only referred to iron, especially when the Rg Veda does not mention other metals apart from gold, which is mentioned more frequently than ayas. Furthermore, the Yajur and Atharva Vedas refer to different colors of ayas. This seems to show that he word was a generic term for all types of metal. It is also mentioned in the Vedas that the dasyus (enemies of the Aryans) also used ayas to build their cities. Thus there is no hard evidence to prove that the ‘Aryans invaders’ were an iron-based culture and their enemies were not.

Yajna-vedhis Throughout the Vedas, there is mention of fire-sacrifices (yajnas) and the elaborate construction of vedhis (fire altars). Fire-sacrifices were probably the most important aspect of worshiping the Supreme for the Aryan people. However, the remains of yajna-vedhis (fire altars) were uncovered in Harrapa by B.B. Lal of the Archeological Survey of India, in his excavations at the third millenium site of Kalibangan.

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The geometry of these yajna-vedhis is explained in the Vedic texts such as the Satpathabrahmana. The University of California at Berkley has compared this geometry to the early geometry of Ancient Greece and Mesopotamia and established that the geometry found in the Vedic scriptures should be dated before 1700BC. Such evidence proves that the Harrapans were part of the Vedic fold.

Ojections in the Realm of Linguistics and Literature There are various objections to the conclusions reached by the indologists concerning linguistics. Firstly they have never given a plausible excuse to explain how a Nomadic Invasion could have overwhelmed the original languages in one of the most densely populated regions of the ancient world. Secondly, there are more linguistic changes in Vedic Sanskrit than there are in classical Sanskrit since the time of Panini (aprox.500 BC). So although they have assigned an arbitrary figure of 200 year periods to each of the four Vedas, each of these periods could have existed for any number of centuries and the 200 year figure is totally subjective and probably too short a figure. Another important point is that none of the Vedic literatures refer to any Invasion from outside or an original homeland from which the Aryans came from. They only focus upon the region of the Seven Rivers (sapta-sindhu). The Puranas refer to migrations of people out of India, which explains the discoveries of treaties between kings with Aryan names in the Middle East, and references to Vedic gods in West Asian texts in the second millenium BC. However, the indologists try to explain these as traces of the migratory path of the Aryans into India.

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North - South Divide

Indologists have concluded that the original inhabitants of the Indus Valley civilization were of Dravidian descent. This poses another interesting question. If the Aryans had invaded and forced the Dravidians down to the South, why is there no Aryan/ Dravidian divide in the respective religious literatures and historical traditions? Prior to the British, the North and South lived in peace and there was a continuous cultural exchange between the two. Sanskrit was the common language between the two regions for centuries. Great acaryas such as Sankara, Ramanuja, Madhva, Vallabha, and Nimbarka were all from South, yet they are all respected in North India. Prior to them, there were great sages from the South such as Bodhayana and Apastamba. Agastya Rsi is placed in high regard in South India as it is said that he brought the Tamil language from Mount Kailasa to the South.7 Yet he is from the North! Are we to understand that the South was uninhabited before the Aryan Invasion? If not, who were the original inhabitants of South India, who accepted these newcomers from the North without any struggle or hostility?

Saivism

The advocates of the Invasion theory argue that the inhabitants of Indus valley were Saivites (Siva worshippers) and since Saivism is more prevalent among the South Indians, the inhabitants of the Indus valley region must have been Dravidians. Siva worship, however, is not alien to Vedic culture, and is certainly not confined to South India. The words Siva and Sambhu are not Dravidian in origin as some indologists would have us believe (derived from the Tamil words ‘civa’ - to redden, to become angry, and ‘cembu’ - copper, the red metal). Both words have Sanskrit roots – ‘si’ meaning auspicious, gracious, benevolent, helpful, kind, and ‘sam’ meaning being or existing for happiness or welfare, granting or causing happiness, benevolent, helpful, kind. These words are used in this sense only, right from their very first occurrence. 8 Moreover, some of the most important holy places for Saivites are located in North India: the traditional holy residence of Lord Siva is Mount Kailasa situated in the far north. Varanasi is the most revered and auspicious seat of Saivism. There are verses in the Rg Veda mentioning Siva and Rudra and consider him to be an important deity. Indra himself is called Siva several times in Rg Veda (2:20:3, 6:45:17, 8:93:3).

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So Siva is not a Dravidian divinity only, and by no means is he a non-Vedic divinity. Indologists have also presented terra-cotta lumps found in the fire-alters in Harappa and taken them to be Siva-lingas, implying that Saivism was prevalent among the Indus valley people. But these terra-cotta lumps have been proved to be the measures for weighing commodities by shopkeepers and merchants. Their weights have been found in perfect integral ratios, in the manner like 1 gm, 2 gms, 5 gms, 10 gms etc. They were not used as the Siva-lingas for worship, but as the weight measurements.

Discovery of the Saraswati River

Whereas the famous River Ganga is mentioned only once in the Rg Veda, the River Sarasvati is mentioned at least sixty times. Sarasvati is now a dry river, but it once flowed all the way from the Himalayas to the ocean across the desert of Rajasthan. Research by Dr. Wakankar has verified that the River Sarasvati changed course at least four times before going completely dry around 1900BC. 9 The latest satellite data combined with field archaeological studies have shown that the Rg Vedic Sarasvati had stopped being a perennial river long before 3000 BC.

As Paul-Henri Francfort of CNRS, Paris recently observed â&#x20AC;&#x201C; â&#x20AC;&#x153;...We now know, thanks to the field work of the Indo-French expedition that when the proto-historic people settled in this area, no large river had flowed there for a long time.â&#x20AC;?

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The proto-historic people he refers to are the early Harappans of 3000 BC. But satellite photos show that a great prehistoric river that was over 7 kilometers wide did indeed flow through the area at one time. This was the Sarasvati described in the Rg Veda. Numerous archaeological sites have also been located along the course of this great prehistoric river thereby confirming Vedic accounts. The great Sarasvati that flowed â&#x20AC;&#x153;from the mountain to the seaâ&#x20AC;? is now seen to belong to a date long anterior to 3000 BC. This means that the Rg Veda describes the geography of North India long before 3000 BC. All this shows that the Rg Veda must have been in existence no later than 3500 BC. 10 With so many eulogies composed to the River Sarasvati, we can gather that it must have been well known to the Aryans, who therefore could not have been foreign invaders. This also indicates that the Vedas are much older than Mahabharata, which mentions the Sarasvati as a dying river.

Discovery of New Sites

Since the initial discoveries of Mohenjo-daro and Harappa on the Ravi and Sindhu rivers in 1922, over 2500 other settlements have been found stretching from Baluchistan to the Ganga and beyond and down to the Tapti Valley. This covers almost a million and a half square kilometers. More than 75% of these sites are concentrated not along the Sindhu, as was believed 70 years ago, but on the banks of the dried up river Sarasvati. The drying up of this great river was a catastrophe, which led to a massive exodus of people in around 2000-1900BC. Some of these people moved southeast, some northwest, and some to Middle-eastern countries such as Iran and Mesopotamia. Dynasties and rulers with Indian names appear and disappear all over west Asia confirming the migration of people from East to West. With so much evidence against the Aryan Invasion theory, one wonders as to why this ugly vestige of British imperialism is still taught in Indian schools today! Such serious misconceptions can only be reconciled by accepting that the Aryans were the original inhabitants of the Indus Valley region, and not a horde of marauding foreign nomads. Such an Invasion never occurred. _____________

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1 In 1654 A.D. Archbishop Usher of Ireland firmly announced that his study of Scripture had proved that creation took place at 9.00am on the 23rd October 4004 B.C. So from the end of the seventeenth century, this chronology was accepted by the Europeans and they came to believe that Adam was created 4004 years before Christ. 2 Rg Veda (2-20-10) refers to “Indra, the killer of Vritra, who destroys the Krishna Yoni Dasyus”. This is held as evidence that the “invading Aryans” exterminated the “dark aboriginals” 3 RV.10.1.11, 8.85.3, 2.3.9 4 RV.6.22.10 5 RV. 1.32.10-11 6 In Valmiki’s Ramayana, Lord Ramacandra is described as an Arya as follows - aryah sarva-samas-caivah sadaiva priya-darsana (Arya: one who cares for the equality of all and is dear to everyone) 7 Tradition has it that Lord Siva requested the sage Agastya to write the Tamil grammar, which was spoken prior to Sage Agastya’s work. Agastya chose his disciple Tholgapya’s grammar for Tamil which was considered much more simple than the grammar that Agastya had developed. This laid the foundation for later classical Tamil literature, and also spawned other Dravadian languages. Agastya Muni and Tholgapya are considered to be the Tamil counterpart of Panini of Sanskrit. 8 Monier-Williams Sanskrit to English Dictionary 9 Gods, Sages and Kings by David Frawley 10 Aryan Invasion of india: The Myth and the Truth by N.S. Rajaram

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A Search for the Historical Krishna - Dr. N.S. Rajaram

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Since the epic Ma episodes goes for War, we can ascer justified work Sri Chandra up to ou book, Se

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hor and mathematician, based in the USA, where he formerly worked for the National

utic and Space Administration (NASA), in the fields of Artificial Intelligence and Ro-

In recent years he has written extensively in the fields of archaeology and ancient his-

tory or Myth?

o on to celebrate another Sri Krishna-Janmastami, here is a question of interest to all of Krishna a historical figure, or is he just a myth created to fill a void in the Hindu soul? most admired and adored figure in the Hindu pantheon, Krishna occupies a unique place n history and tradition. Known since time immemorial as a Yadava prince of the house ni, and the son of Vasudeva and Devaki, most Hindus have accepted Krishna an avatar nation of Lord Vishnu. But now, in keeping with the spirit of the scientific age in which many people – including Hindus – want to know if he really existed. This is not a new enon: the question of his historicity has engaged the attention of scholars for nearly two s, ever since European scholars began to study India, questioning every belief that the had held for millennia. They concluded – and their Indian followers faithfully accepted rishna was a myth. In reality, it was a preconceived answer, which they sought to justify g it an appearance of scholarship. But in these articles I will present evidence to show shna was indeed a historical figure who lived about 5000 years ago.

e life and career of Krishna lie within the century or so described in the great historical ahabharata, if we can demonstrate the historicity of the characters and the principal of the epic, we will essentially have established Krishna’s historicity also. And the same the date: once we know the dates of the principal events in the Mahabharata, like the automatically have an approximate date for Krishna. If, on the basis of our search, we rtain the existence of Krishna, and arrive also at an approximate date for him, we are in regarding him as a historical figure. The approach that I follow is inspired by the i Krishna Charitra written more than a century ago by the great Bengali author Bankima a Chatterji, supplemented by archaeological and other research that has come to light ur own time. The topics presented in these articles are discussed in greater detail in my earch for the Historical Krishna.

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Evidence For Krishna According to Indian sources, Krishna was a Vedic figure. He was a younger contemporary of Krishna-Dvaipayana – or ‘Krishna of the Island’ – better known as Veda Vyasa – who by tradition was responsible for the organization of Vedic hymns into their four fold division, the form in which we know them today. He is also by tradition the author of the earliest version of the Mahabharata. It is worth noting that the names of some of the characters of the period are found in the literature of the period and also on some Harappan seals that Jha and I have deciphered. For example, words like Paila (Vyasa’s pupil), Akrura (Krishna’s friend), Vrishni (Krishna’s clan), Yadu (Krishna’s ancestor), Sritirtha (old name for Dwaraka) are found on seals, some of which may go back five thousand years. The greatest barrier to a rational study of ancient Indian history continues to be a nineteenth century colonial fiction known as the Aryan invasion of India. When the ruins of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were discovered about 70 years ago, this was followed by a new piece of fiction known as the Aryan-Dravidian wars. Science has now fully discredited both. We now know that the Harappan Civilization came at the end of the Vedic Age. I will not go into their details here, but only mention that in these articles I totally ignore both the Aryan invasion and the idea of the Harappan Civilization as Dravidian, unrelated to Vedic. (See my book The Politics of History, Chapter 1. For a more detailed exposition.) Panini, the great grammarian mentions several Mahabharata characters including Vasudeva (Krishna), Arjuna, Nakula, Kunti and others. We find the names of Mahabharata characters in Vedic literature – Vicitravirya in Kathaka Samhita; Sikhandin Yajnasena in Kaushitaki Brahmana; Janamejaya the grandson of Abhimanyu in Aitareya Brahmana; and Pariksita in Shatapatha Brahmana. And the list is far from exhaustive. Among Buddhist works Kunala Jataka mentions Krishnaa (i.e., Draupadi) in addition to Bhimasena, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva and Yudhittila (Pali for Yudhisthira). Dhananjaya of the Kuru race (Arjuna) and Draupadi Svayamvara are referred to in Dhumakari Jataka. The same work refers also to Yudhisthira as an ancestor of the Kurus of Indapattana (i.e., Indraprastha) and also to Vidurapandita. In addition to these Mahabharata characters, Krishna himself is mentioned in Buddhist works such as Sutrapitaka and Lalitavistara. These works are often hostile to Krishna and his

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teachings, but the very fact they found it necessary to try to discredit him (and his teachings) shows that he was accepted as a historical figure even by them. They did not try to deny his historical existence. Returning to the late Vedic literature, one of the most interesting references to Krishna is to be found in the ancient Chandogya Upanishad. It goes (my translation): “Ghora of the Angirasas spoke thus to Krishna, son of Devaki (Krishna Devaki-putra) – “Hearing your words I too am now free of thirst.” And till the end of life he sought refuge in these three principles: “Thou art indestructible (akshita). Thou art eternal (achyuta). Thou art the flow of life (prana samhita).” Krishna Devaki-putra is of course Krishna of the Mahabharata. It is worth noting that Krishna studied the Vedas under Ghora of the Angirasa clan, who seems to have inspired Krishna to develop ideas that later went into the Bhagavad-gita. The Gita is essentially a summary of the Upanishads combined with the rationalism of the Sankhya philosophy. No less remarkable is the fact that there is a reference to this episode – of Ghora providing the seed of the Gita – on one of the Harappan seals. The message is ‘ghorah datah dvayuh varchah’ – meaning ‘Two essences given by Ghora’, the two essences being the Upanishads (Vedanta) and Sankhya. So in the third millennium BC, Ghora was recognized as the inspirer of this synthesis of Vedanta and Sankhya affected by Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita. The important thing to note is that unlike the Harivamsha or the Bhagavata, these works – the Upanishads, the Jatakas, the Sutras or the Brahmanas – are not part of the historical tradition and had therefore no reason to use these names except familiarity. With such profuse references to Krishna and other Mahabharata characters in so many unrelated works of diverse kinds, written in different periods, there cannot be the slightest doubt that they refer to historical characters in a historical era. What remains now is to fix an approximate date for Krishna or the Mahabharata War.

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Krishna’s Date Traditional scholars have always held that Kali-yuga – the Age of Kali – began in 3102 BC. Whether this refers to the date of the eighteen-day Mahabharata War or of the death of Krishna is unclear and also I feel unimportant at this time. This results in a discrepancy of about 35 years between the two, which is small in comparison with the very great age of the events we are speaking about. Several astronomers and astrologers of great eminence have attempted to arrive at the date based on astronomical references found in the epics. Professor K. Srinivasaraghavan, perhaps the foremost authority on the topic, has even determined November 22, 3067 BC as the day on which the Mahabharata War took place, but this assumes that ancient astronomical observations are exact which I chose to avoid. I am not suggesting they are wrong, only that I prefer to be conservative. Some scholars reject such an early date as c. 3100 on the ground that the Aryans came to India only in 1500 BC, and Krishna and the Mahabharata War must therefore be later. As noted the Aryan invasion theory has been discredited by science. Also, our decipherment of Harappan and pre-Harappan scripts has taken the Vedas to long before 3500 BC. So these objections can be dismissed. The one arguable issue is the discovery of an ancient submerged city at the island of Dwaraka by the renowned archaeologist S.R. Rao. Rao, who identifies it with Krishna’s Dwaraka dates it to about 1500 BC. But his identification rests on insufficient grounds based on ambiguous literary interpretations. In any event, the historical references in the deciphered Harappan seals, some of which are over a thousand years older than 1500 BC make it impossible that the site found by Rao is Krishna’s Dwaraka. We can next look at Krishna’s date, from two different directions. Since Ashvalayana mentions the Mahabharata and its authors Jaimini and Vaisampayana as ancient, at least a century must have elapsed between the War and his time. He records that in his time plants sprouted after the beginning of monsoon rains in the Hindu month of Bhadrapada. This now takes place in Jyestha or Ashadha. This goes to show that the monsoon in his time used to start in the month of Shravana instead of Jyestha as it does today – a difference of about seventy days. This is due to a well-known astronomical phenomenon called the ‘precession of the equinoxes’. Seasons fall back relative to the fixed stars (and the Hindu calendar which is based on the fixed stars) by about one day every 72 years. What this means is that the beginning of monsoon noted by Ashvalayana must have been taking place close to 5000 years ago or about 3000 BC.

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Further, Ashvalayana pays homage to his teacher Kahola Kaushitaki who was the sage of the Kaushitaki Brahmana. It mentions several Mahabharata characters. It also mentions that the winter solstice – as the first day of winter is called – took place on the day on which we now celebrate the Maha-Shivaratri festival. The winter solstice now falls on December 21, and the Maha-Shivaratri comes around March 1. This is due to the precession of the equinoxes. This again means that from the time of Kahola Kausitaki, the seasons have moved by about 70 days. So, 70 times 72 or about 5000 years must have passed. This also supports a date of about 3100 BC for the Mahabharata War. Amazingly, we even have Greek records pointing to the same approximate date. Greek travelers who came to India following Alexander’s invasion have left us some tantalizing references to Krishna and also to Indian historical records as they existed in their time. Authors like Pliny referred to Krishna as Heracles. They record that the Indian Heracles – our Krishna – was held in special honor by the Sourseni tribe one of whose major cities was Methora. We can recognize them as Shuraseni and Mathura. (Shura was the father of Vasudeva and the grandfather of Krishna.) Indian Heracles (Krishna) is recorded by the Greeks as having lived 138 generations before the time of Alexander and Sandracottos which we may take to be c. 330 BC. Taking 20 years per generation, which is known to be a good average when ancient Indian dynasties are involved, we are led to the computation 2760 + 330 = 3090 BC which is remarkably close to the Kali date of 3102 BC. So a reckoning based on ancient Greek records takes us again to the traditional date of c. 3100 BC. In summary, we may safely conclude that technical and literary evidence from several independent sources point to the traditional Kali date of 3102 BC as being close to the actual date of the Mahabharata War. We have therefore overwhelming evidence showing that Krishna was a historical figure who must have lived within a century on either side of that date, i.e., in the 3200-3000 BC period.

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Does the Soul Exist Evidence says ‘Yes’

-R

Robert Lanza M.D.

The reality of the soul is among the most important questions of life. Although religions go on and on about its existence, how do we know if souls really exist? A string of new scientific experiments helps answer this ancient spiritual question. The idea of the soul is bound up with the idea of a future life and our belief in a continued existence after death. It’s said to be the ultimate animating principle by which we think and feel, but isn’t dependent on the body. Many infer its existence without scientific analysis or reflection. Indeed, the mysteries of birth and death, the play of consciousness during dreams (or after a few martinis), and even the commonest mental operations — such as imagination and memory — suggest the existence of a vital life force — an élan vital — that exists independent of the body. Yet, the current scientific paradigm doesn’t recognize this spiritual dimension of life. We’re told we’re just the activity of carbon and some proteins; we live awhile and die. And the universe? It too has no meaning. It has all been worked out in the equations — no need for a soul. But biocentrism — a new ‘theory of everything’ — challenges this traditional, materialistic model of reality. In all directions, this outdated paradigm leads to insoluble enigmas, to ideas that are ultimately irrational. But knowledge is the prelude to wisdom, and soon our worldview will catch up with the facts. Of course, most spiritual people view the soul as emphatically more definitive than the scientific concept. It’s considered the incorporeal essence of a person, and is said to be immortal and transcendent of material existence. But when scientists speak of the soul (if at all), it’s usually in a materialistic context, or treated as a poetic synonym for the mind. Everything knowable about the “soul” can be learned by studying the functioning of the brain. In their

G a u d i y a To u c h s t o n e

view, neuroscience is the only branch of scientific study relevant to understanding the soul. Traditionally, science has dismissed the soul as an object of human belief, or reduced it to a psychological concept that shapes our cognition of the observable natural world. The terms “life” and “death” are thus nothing more than the common concepts of “biological life” and “biological death.” The animating principle is simply the laws of chemistry and physics. You (and all the poets and philosophers that ever lived) are just dust orbiting the core of the Milky Way galaxy. As I sit here in my office surrounded by piles of scientific books, I can’t find a single reference to the soul, or any notion of an immaterial, eternal essence that occupies our being. Indeed, a soul has never been seen under an electron microscope, nor spun in the laboratory in a test tube or ultra-centrifuge. According to these books, nothing appears to survive the human body after death. While neuroscience has made tremendous progress illuminating the functioning of the brain, why we have a subjective experience remains mysterious. The problem of the soul lies exactly here, in understanding the nature of the self, the “I” in existence that feels and lives life. But this isn’t just a problem for biology and cognitive science, but for the whole of Western natural philosophy itself. Our current worldview — the world of objectivity and naïve realism — is beginning to show fatal cracks. Of course, this will not surprise many of the philosophers and other readers who, contemplating the works of men such as Plato, Socrates and Kant, and of Buddha and other great spiritual teachers, kept wondering about the relationship between the universe and the mind of man. Recently, biocentrism and other scientific theories have also started to challenge the old physico-chemical paradigm, and to ask some of the difficult questions about life: Is there a soul? Does anything endure the ravages of time? Life and consciousness are central to this new view of being, reality and the cosmos. Although the current scientific paradigm is based on the belief that the world has an objective observer-independent existence, real experiments suggest just the opposite. We think life is just the activity of atoms and particles, which spin around for a while and then dissipate into nothingness. But if we add life to the equation, we can explain some of the major puzzles of modern science, including the uncertainty principle, entanglement, and the fine-tuning of the laws that shape the universe.

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Consider the famous two-slit experiment. When you watch a particle go through the holes, it behaves like a bullet, passing through one slit or the other. But if no one observes the particle, it exhibits the behavior of a wave and can pass through both slits at the same time. This and other experiments tell us that unobserved particles exist only as ‘waves of probability’ as the great Nobel laureate Max Born demonstrated in 1926. They’re statistical predictions — nothing but a likely outcome. Until observed, they have no real existence; only when the mind sets the scaffolding in place, can they be thought of as having duration or a position in space. Experiments make it increasingly clear that even mere knowledge in the experimenter’s mind is sufficient to convert possibility to reality. Many scientists dismiss the implications of these experiments, because until recently, this observer-dependent behavior was thought to be confined to the subatomic world. However, this is being challenged by researchers around the world. In fact, last year a team of physicists (Nature Communications 2:263, 2011) showed that quantum weirdness also occurs in the human-scale world. They studied huge compounds composed of up to 430 atoms, and confirmed that this strange quantum behavior extends into the larger world we live in. Importantly, this has a direct bearing on the question of whether humans and other living creatures have souls. As Kant pointed out over 200 years ago, everything we experience — including all the colors, sensations and objects we perceive — are nothing but representations in our mind. Space and time are simply the mind’s tools for putting it all together. Now, to the amusement of idealists, scientists are beginning dimly to recognize that those rules make existence itself possible. Indeed, the experiments above suggest that objects only exist with real properties if they are observed. The results not only defy our classical intuition, but suggest that a part of the mind — the soul — is immortal and exists outside of space and time. “The hope of another life” wrote Will Durant “gives us courage to meet our own death, and to bear with the death of our loved ones; we are twice armed if we fight with faith.” And we are thrice armed if we fight with science.

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The Story of the Bug & The Flea

There once lived a king who had a very beautifully decorated bedroom. An exquisite while silk sheet covered the whole bed and with in the folds of that sheet there lived a female flea whose name was Mandavisarpini. When the king was sleeping, she used to drink his blood. In his way she spent her time very happily. It just so happened that one evening, a bug flew into the bedroom and landed upon the bed. When the flea saw him, she shouted angrily, “Hey bug! What are you doing here? Get out of here – this is my bed!” “Madam”, replied the bug, “Is that how your speak to a guest, even if he is a useless bug? A guest should always be treated with respect and made to feel welcome with kind words and refreshments. Besides, I have drunk all types of blood, I have never had the pleasure of tasting the blood of royalty. I presume a king’s blood must taste very sweet since he always eats the best food. Now, if you don’t mind, I wish to taste the king’s blood.”

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"But bug,” replied the flea, “I only drink the king’s blood when he has gone fast asleep. You bite is painful. If you promise to let the king go to sleep first before you start biting him, then I will allow you to drink his blood.” “Very well,” replied the bug, “I promise. In fact, I will wait until you have sucked his blood before I drink it myself.” Not long after, the king came into his bedchamber and lay down on the bed. However, as soon as he set eyes on the king, the bug began thinking of the king’s sweet blood and he began to drool with anticipation. Not being able to control himself, he immediately bit into the king without waiting for him to fall asleep. At once, the king jumped up and cried out to his servants, “Quickly! Come in here! Something has bitten me! See if there is a bug or a flea in my bed.” As soon as the bug heard this, he flew away out of the window. When the servants came running in and searched the bed, they came across the flea lying between the folds of the sheets, and killed her. The moral of the story is this: Never share your house with a stranger or you will end up paying for it.

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Culinary Magic In this issue, Advaita Acharya shows us how to prepare one of the most celebrated sweets in India - Rasgulla. Ingredients

Method

500 ml Fresh cow milk 100 to 200 ml Whey 5 cups Sugar 2 cups Water 1/4 cup Milk & 1/4 cup water to remove impurities from syrup 2 Soap nuts 1 tsp Rose water 2 cups Warm water to sprinkle on syrup

1. Boil the milk. Keep it aside for 5 to 7 minutes till its temperat 2. Dissolve the sugar completely in 2 cups water in a thick base 3. Raise the flame. Add 1/4 cup of milk in it. Milk will bring imp ties is not disturbed. After 5 to 10 min, filter out the impurities 4. Curdle the milk by pouring whey water in it slowly while con liquid. 5. Wait for 5 minutes and strain the Paneer through thin cotton 6. Remove the Paneer from cloth. Kneed it well till it becomes s palms. 7. Put the syrup on flame. Remove 4 ladles of syrup and add eq use. We will soak Rasgullas in it after they are ready. 8. Add soap nut water in syrup. It is crucial to get a heavy froth 10. Add paneer balls and let them cook for 10 to 15 min. Sprink constant. After 10 minutes of cooking sprinkle water every min 9. Rasgullas when ready will show a fine network of lines or cra 10. Remove them carefully and quickly in thin syrup. Keep at ro 11. Refrigerate and serve.

ture drops to 70 degree centigrade. ed container on a low flame. purities to surface. Add 1/4 cup of water. Slow down the flame so that layer of impuriusing a thin cotton cloth and keep the clear syrup aside. ntinuously stirring it. You will see separation of white curd and green transparent

n cloth. Squeeze the cloth to remove all water. smooth and soft. Make 10 equal balls from it by rolling the dough between your

qual amount of warm water to make a separate thin syrup. Keep this aside for later

over the syrup at this point. kle warm water at regular intervals of 2 minutes to keep the consistency of syrup nute. acks. oom temp for 3 hours. Add Rose water.

Krishna Chaitanya: The Hidden Treasure of India by Walther Eidlitz It is the intention of this work to let the spirit of the sources become alive. This work is the result of thirty years of study of which nine years were spent in India. THE FIRST PART of this work, “The Indian Concept of the Revelation of God”, displays in manifold scenes – some of great artistic beauty – the play of the One God as Rama, Narasinha and Krishna. In between, a concise account of the psychology of Divine Love is given. The eternal continuous outpouring stream of this Love that floods back to its source as serving knowing love (bhakti) is described and the Eroticism of the Absolute is clearly set apart from mundane eroticism. Chapters about the significance of Krishna Caitanya within the Indian Revelation of God follow.

THIS BOOK is a translation of W. Eidlitz’ (Vamandas) main work, Krishna-Caitanya, Sein Leben und Seine Lehre, Stockholm University, 1968 that was originally written in German. The English edition is a revised edition which includes later corrections by the author and some additional explanations and translations from the original sources, provided by his guru, Svami Sadananda Dasa.

THE SECOND PART of this work presents extensive excerpts of the early sources of this new Play of God on Earth as Krishna Caitanya that are, for the most part, for the first time translated from Sanskrit and Medieval Bengali into a European language. IN THE APPENDIX chronological tables are provided as well as an account of the divisions of the Veda according to the tradition itself, a chapter on the language of the Bengali sources, a bibliography and an extensive verification of sources.

Svami Sadananda dasa was an early German disciple of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati and was initiated in 1934. The book (585 p., 18 x 28 cm, 1.5 kg) costs 30 € plus shipping (10 € within Sweden and 20 € to countries outside of Sweden) Please send your order to: info[at]sadananda.com to get the bank details. For more information about the author and a preview of the book visit: www.sadananda.com